The on-going Kabaddi Premier League came into existence largely owing to the success of Indian Premier League in cricket. The unprecedented accomplishment of IPL made the kabaddi administrators add many frills to the tournament and one ingredient that went well with the spectators was the everyday cultural extravaganza by young artistes of the city.

Keen to showcase the various facets of Indian culture the organisers gave slots to the artistes in between matches.

Artistes from Sri Nrutya Arts Academy, under the tutelage of Mr. Venkata Sarma, won appreciation from one and all for their diversified performances.

“Our students performed Siva Thandavam, Mohiniyattam, snake and peacock dance, Kavadi, a Tamil Nadu folk dance form, and also the popular ‘puli vesham',” said Mr. Sarma, who is also a classical dancer.

He said his students' performed Punjab's evergreen Bhangra dance much to the delight of the players from north India.

“They (the players) kept clapping and whistling. We are happy our guests enjoyed the efforts of the young artistes,” he added.

However, the classical dance on top of a pot drew attention of one and all. “The motivation factor for the artistes was the live telecast by Doordarshan.

It is a fact that the cultural programmes added more lustre to the event,” felt Mr. Mahavadhi Sudheer, a DD commentator. Youngsters from city's modern dance institute also showcased the present-day dance patterns.

“The first edition of KPL is a success and the role played by these artistes is laudable. I hope to see the future editions with more programmes based on Indian culture and tradition unlike gyrations of the scantly-dressed cheergirls in IPL,” felt Manpreet Singh, skipper of Hyderabad Horses.