On August 12th 2006, VishnuPriya Samudrala, a student of  Sunanda Narayanan presented her solo dance debut (Arangetram) in Bharatanatyam, an Indian classical dance style at  the Littleton High School. The evening offered a variety of traditional pieces to some sophisticated dance items that reflected her perseverance and hard work preparing for this event.

The orchestra that had well established artists like Murali Balachandran on the Mridangam, Tara Bangalore on the Violin, Durga Krishnan on the Veena,and  V.K.Raman on the Flute was led by guru Sunanda Narayanan providing the Nattuvangam and vocal music along with her illustrious  mother Sujatha Vijayaraghavan. The two voices of the artists in perfect harmony and melody with the music was a rare treat.
 
VishnuPriya began her recital with a traditional Thodaya Mangalam, a musical invocation in praise of the deities at the temple of Vazhuvoor in South India and a Mallari that displayed the 9 beat cycle in ragam Gambira Nattai  followed by Allaripu in the Rupakam talam. This was followed by a Kauthuvam in Ragam Nattai. The Shabdam " in Ragamalika" on the bounties of nature slowly brought Vishupriya’s potential into focus. The evening's concert then moved on to the piece de resistance for a Bharatanatyam dancer – the Varnam. The Varnam was a popular piece on Lord Muruga in Raga Nilambari choreographed by Smt Rhadha that highlighted both the rhythmic patterns of her footwork and the nuances of abhinaya.  In the second half, Vishnupriya’s tenacity and perseverance were aptly reflected with two pieces Natanam Aadinar and Bhavayami Gopala Balam and a Javali ‘ Nee Maatale Maayanuraa.
 
The evening ended with a thillana in Raga Brindavini , and what followed the piece was a shower of applause from the large appreciative gathering after the Mangalam, where the dancer concluded by offering her prayer and gratitude to all present..

The violin, veena, flute ensemble played 2 musical interludes of Sri Lalgudi's Mand Thillana and the ever popular Venkatachala Nilayam in Sindhubhairavi which were very well received.

Her Guru, Sunanda Narayanan shared her thoughts on her student, “Vishnu came under my tutelage two years ago after a brief hiatus from classical dance training. As with all my students, I started her training beginning at the very basics, namely, the "Thaiyya Thai" adavus. I feel that it is important for a student of my school to imbibe the Vazhuvoor style with all its nuances and attention to detail, and this effort is compromised if the student wants to learn just dance items and not the basic adavus and postures. She was a quick learner and learnt the entire margam required for a full-fledged performance from me in a short while through a combination of 1-1 and group lessons. I must also commend the unflinching support from her parents all through this rigorous training period”.

 VishuPriya has this to say , “This entire experience has been overwhelming and wonderful. Sunanda Aunty is an amazing woman who I admire and look up to. She had so much patience to go through this entire production from teaching me dances to keeping my enthusiasm up to be able to finish the performance. This experience taught me determination, patience and responsibility and through her I found a newfound lasting love for Indian classical dance.  She helped me not only do dance but embody the character I am dancing, Besides dance, I learned a lot more about how to organize and conduct myself in life from Sunanda Aunty. This Arangetram especially means a lot to me because I have been dancing since I was five years old, and have looked forward to this performance for many years. Having learnt classical and folk dancing, my interest in Bharatanatyam waxed and waned over the years.  My mother and my many teachers who encouraged and supported me along the way really helped me push through everything.  My family is very musical so doing this performance was a family dream and group effort. I feel very lucky to have both my vocal teacher Tara Aunty and Veena teacher Durga Aunty support me on stage along with an excellent orchestra.  Sujatha Aunty helped me with subtle corrections during weeks just before the performance which added an impact.  I learned a lot from all my Gurus and thank them all for making me what I am today. The art of dance is so beautiful and I look forward to continue my learning and performing through college"

Durga Krishnan who has taught Veena to VishuPriya said,"All the items chosen for the program were superb. The thodayamangalam in praise of the gods and goddess of Vazhuvur (Vishnu's teacher Sunanda comes from the Vazhuvur tradition of dancing) itself set the tone for the rest of the program and the Mallari that followed it emphasized it even more. The chosen pada varnam in Neelambari by the violin maestro Padmabhushan Sri Lalgudi G Jayaraman was choreographed very well by Smt Rhadha and explained so beautifully by her mother Mrs. Sujatha Vijayaraghavan who is a distinguished musician and musicologist. She was the singer for the program too. Vishnu did a fantastic job with her expressions (Abhinaya) and foot work. The best part was the long jathi with only the mridangam accompanying that she did in pancha nadai in the charanam of the varnam. It was a very well put together program and I enjoyed being part of it".  

Jeyanthi Ghatraju , a dance teacher in the area commented “ I felt that Vishnu has evolved into a young, energetic as well as a mature dancer. It was very evident from the Nee Matale javali. A normal 16-yr old would have had a bit of a hard time doing the same the way Vishnu did it”.A friend of the family Amruta commented “VishnuPriya is blessed with extremely quick and light feet. Her 'laya' or 'timing' is excellent. Last but not least, devoted and dedicated parents.”

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