Parshwanath Upadhye

"Upadhye’s interpretation of a devotee’s adoration of Shiva, more specifically at the famous Chidambaram temple, was a sight to behold. His performance was both athletic and graceful. His high kicks, leaps and knee turns did not come at the cost of nuances such as beautifully articulated mudras or clarity of movement in his adavus (basic bharatanatyam dance steps). To top it all off, he kept up the intensity of the dance until the very end, building a sense of crescendo. There were quite a few audible sighs in the audience, who were clearly moved when the devotee was granted audience by Lord Shiva."

"Parshwanath Upadhye needs to bring more gravitas into his Bharatanatyam abhinaya, than the present superficial mime narratives that seem to be his choice. More like theatre, he keeps spinning narratives which lack in-depth treatment, as seen in Baro Krishnaiyyaa and the other composition devoted to Goddess Chamudeswari, where the over spun Kalidasa episode became more like a digression. The starting Hamsadhwani invocation from the Mysore Bharatanatyam repertoire and the Balamurali Krishna Gati Bhed Priya Tillana in Adi talam showed the dancer’s grasp over nritta. With his Yoga expertise, Upadhye moves with ease.

Parshwanath Upadhye has received several national awards, including the Sangeet Natak Akademi’s Yuva Puraskar award in 2017. He is also an empanelled artist of the ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations).

"We know Parshwanath Upadhye as a Bharatanatyam soloist from Bangalore[...]. What we were not aware of is that he is a choreographer, and a brilliant one at that. At Kartik Fine Arts, ‘Hara,’ by Parshwanath’s Punyah Dance Company, was a stunning 55-minute production that combined precision in dance movements, perfect timing, layered music, deft visualisation and effective lighting."

The above review appeared in the article "Dance practitioners churn out issues through deliberations". The Asian Age. India: The Asian Age. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 23 May 2019 .

12. "Kala Kiran puraskar" by Adithya Birla foundation Mumbai 2018

13."Rasika Hridaya Chora" by Sridevi Natyalaya Chennai 2018

- Veejay Sai, culture critic, Nov 6, 2017, Celebrating the Nartak"

3. Uttam Kalakaar by Mahamastakaabhisheka Committee, Shravanabelgola 4. Nritya Nipuna by Belli Gajje, Bangalore 5. Arihant Puraskar by Jain Parishat, Kolkata 6. Jain Rashtragaurav by Jain Parishat, Karnataka 7. Natya Keerthi by Aru Shri art centre, Colombo, Sri Lanka 8. CCRT Scholarships for pursuing studies in Bharatnatyam by Ministry of Human Resources Development, Govt. of India 9. Natya Prabha award by The Sabha Kuwait 2016 10. Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar 2017 by Sangeet Natak Akademi, New Delhi 11. Awarded as the best performer of the year 2017 by Music Academy, Chennai

Since 2012 he choreographs, directs, produces and presents under Punyah dance company Bangalore. Among the works presented at national and international venues are Hara, Sat-gati, Paartha, Punyah Krishna and Abha.

In 2010 he established the Upadhye School of Dance in Bangalore of which he is the Director, Chief Choreographer and Performer .

He continued his sadhana with the Guru at Ravind Natya Niketa, Belgaum till the year 2002. He completed his Visharad in Bharatnatyam from Gandharva University, Mumbai in 1993-94 followed by Alankaara in Bharatnatyam from the same University in the year 2000-2003. He also excelled in the Vidwath Examination in Bharatnatyam conducted by Karnataka Secondary Education Board, Bangalore.

Since 2002 Parshwanath Upadhye learnt from dancer duo, Shri Kiran Subramanyam and Smt.Sandhya Kiran at ‘Rasika Academy of performing Arts,’ Bangalore. Now he continues to learn and explore the art form under Padmashri Prof. Sudharani Raghupathy.

After undergoing 15 years of rigorous training in the traditional Mysore style of Bharathanatyam under the guidance of Guru Shri Ravindra Sharma of Belgaum, Parshwanath completed his Arangetram in the year 1996.

In 1996 he additionally he participated in the ‘Karanas’ Workshop conducted by the eminent dancer Guru Dr.Padma Subramanyam at Mangalore. He also had the opportunity to explore Folk music and Dance in the festivals conducted by Bailhongal Janapada Sangha, Karnataka in 1994 -96.

Since 1996 Parshwanath Upadhye has danced and participated in numerous festivals and stages in India and abroad.

Parshwanath Upadhye started teaching Bharatanatyam in 1996 when he established the Sharada Sangeetha Nrithya Academy, Belgaum, of which he was also the Director till the year 2000.