The couple speak proudly of their many achievements. "It was a revelation for the European audience when we first performed Jungle Book in London. Till then, they were under the impression that Bharata Natyam was a solo dance. We incorporated four dance forms in the production - Bharata Natyam, Kathakali, Mohinyattamand and Kathak. We then did Jungle Book in America with the American Ballet Theatre, and it was adjudged the best ballet production of the year," they recall.
Another famous collaborative ballet by the Dhananjayans was Chakra that was based on Indian philosophy. Over a thousand underprivileged children of New York state participated in it.
After holding over 5,000 performances all over the world, Dhananjayan now wants to write a Natya Sastra.
"It is an ambitious project. After the original Natya Sastra (by Bharata Muni), there has been no original book on dance. A lot of changes have taken place in the field of dance but they have not been documented. I want to incorporate the changes both in text and photographic form in the books, and also create them in sculpture," he says.
On a lighter vein, Dhananjayan adds, "Unfortunately, today, there is no Raja to look after such massive projects. I am looking for a Raja to fund the project as this is aimed for the future generation! As I am a positive person, I am sure that it will happen."
The Dhananjayans are the second dancing couple to receive the Padma Bhushan after Kuchipudi dancers Radha and Raja Reddy.
When queried if they thought the recognition from the government was long overdue, pat comes Dhananjayan's reply, "It had to walk from Delhi to Chennai, and that is why it took so long. But better late than never!"
Image: Dhananjayans' troupe performs the Jungle Book.
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