“We are Santosh and Sai-twin brothers who’ve been dancing together since we were young. It all started when we began picking up dance moves from our favourite movie songs at home. Our dad, who works as an RTC employee, saw how much we enjoyed dancing and decided to get us proper training. He enrolled us under Guru Afzal Pasha sir, who taught us Andhra Natyam and introduced us to some Western dance forms.

When Afzal Pasha sir passed away, we were unsure about what to do next. That’s when we were introduced to Perini Venkat sir, who introduced us to Perini Natyam, a traditional Telangana dance form which was originally performed by warriors before heading into battle. It requires strength, precision, and rhythm, and from the moment we started learning it, we knew this was the path we wanted to take. Over the years, we’ve committed ourselves to this art form, which was revived by Nataraja Ramakrishna garu. His contribution to the revival of Perini Natyam cannot be overstated, and we are deeply grateful for his guidance.

We were also fortunate to train and perform under Perini Rajkumar sir’s group, where we learned to perform Perini in its most authentic form. His mentorship has been crucial in shaping our approach to Perini Natyam.  Thanks to visionaries like Dr. Kala Krishna garu, Perini Natyam form has opened up to both men and women in styles like Perini Thandavam and Perini Lasyam.

We’ve had the chance to perform Perini Natyam across India, but one of the most memorable moments for us was in November 2022, when we performed in front of Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ji at HICC Novotel. It was a moment we will never forget.

In January 2025, we were honoured with the Girnar Ratna Puraskar in Junagadh, Gujarat, for our performances in Perini, Kuchipudi, and Jugalbandi.

Dance has become more than just a practice for us-it’s a part of who we are. We hope to pass on our passion for Perini dance to the next generation and keep sharing the greatness of Perini with the world.”

– Sai Kumar Garine and Santosh Kumar Garine, Perini brothers  from Telangana