Shrikant Nandkumar, a research scholar from the Department of Dance at the S.N. School of Arts and Communication, University of Hyderabad (UoH), has been conferred with the prestigious J. L. Narsimha Rao Rangasthala Youth Award 2025 by Potti Sriramulu Telugu University, Hyderabad. The award recognizes his significant contribution to theatre and allied performing arts.
The award is presented annually by the Department of Theatre Arts at Potti Sriramulu Telugu University on the occasion of World Theatre Day (March 27). It honours emerging theatre artists under age 35 who demonstrate excellence in performance, direction, and contribution to the growth of theatre.“This year’s competition was particularly competitive,” said Prof. Padma Priya, Head of the Department of Theatre Arts. Speaking at the ceremony, Vice-Chancellor Prof. Veludanda Nityananda Rao remarked, “An actor must give the illusion that the character’s experience is drawn from his own life. A great actor earns recognition not because of the size of the role, but through the life he breathes into it.”
Shrikant left a career in IT to pursue theatre as a full-time commitment. Since then, he has acted in and directed several acclaimed one-act plays and multilingual productions. He has conducted theatre workshops for children and adults with no prior stage experience and has won numerous state-level theatre competitions. His team’s experimental project, Theatre at Your Doorstep, aimed to raise awareness about theatre in residential colonies and bring performances into everyday public spaces. Apart from being a practitioner, Shrikant is also actively involved in academic research and discourse. He has presented papers at various national and international conferences and contributed to scholarly discussions on topics such as hybrid theatre pedagogy, Movement Vocabulary, and the evolving landscape of Indian dramaturgy. Also published papers in prestigious national and international journals.
Currently pursuing his doctoral research on the dance-theatre interface and its historiography under the guidance of Prof. Aruna Bhikshu, Shrikant continues to blend performance and scholarship. He is associated with the Indian Society for Theatre Research (ISTR) and the International Council for Traditions of Music and Dance (ICTMD).
In his words, “I am deeply grateful to my mentors, friends, and theatre team for their constant support and encouragement. This recognition motivates me to explore and serve the art form I believe in.”