Dressed in a bright pink jacket, Sujith Pakala (12) dances to Maroon 5’s “Memories” in the 2021 upper school dance show. As the dappled blue and violet stage lights cast a gentle glow on the stage, Sujith’s every step and turn remain in sync with his fellow dancers, but the energy he radiates pulls all attention to his streamlined moves.

When Sujith first started dancing in lower school, he struggled with what he believed to be a stigma surrounding male dancers. In seventh grade, however, Sujith began embracing dance after a performance at a relative’s wedding spurred his excitement for the sport. Now, he enjoys connecting with other dancers whom he has performed with for years.

“One of the best things [about dance] is definitely the group — they’re a really great group of people to work with,” Sujith said. “I’ve been working with the same people all the way back since elementary school. Dancing with each other … has always been a way where I’ve gotten closer to the team.”

Sujith enjoys the team bonding he experiences with his fellow dancers. The time spent together in rehearsals and performances brings the dancers closer together.

“One of my favorite weeks of the year is the week where we run through the dance show,” Sujith said. “You’re leaving off campus and there’s a sense that you’re not just at school practicing, but you’re going as a team to do something greater. And backstage, you’ll be jumping up and down and getting in a huddle.”

Sujith’s appreciation for dance originates from a love for music. He describes an impulse to start dancing whenever he hears a beat.

“I have this need to tap my foot to the beat of music,” Sujith said. “I’ll be at the gym or in a mall and I’ll start dancing. There’s a lot to do with dance and expression, but for me … [dance] makes me happy in general, grooving to the music.”

Fellow dancer BB Ajlouny (11) describes Sujith’s personal dancing style and innate ability to capture an audience’s attention.

“[Sujith’s] dancing has a certain flavor that you don’t see in many other dancers,” BB said. “His stage presence is phenomenal. Your eyes are drawn to him, and he’s overall a really incredible dancer.”

When Sujith believed that he had hit a plateau in terms of his technical skill in the beginning of high school, he took the initiative to participate in a dance summer camp as well as studio classes to elevate his technique. This philosophy of continual self-improvement drives Sujith to constantly refine his dancing.

“[Dance] is all about repeating and repeating until you get it right,” Sujith said. “That was one of the biggest lessons I learned — you don’t repeat until you get it right the first time; you repeat until you can consistently get it right. I apply that [lesson] now to everything.”

Now, as co-captain of Kinetic Krew, Harker’s all-male dance group, Sujith draws upon his experience as a dancer to lead his fellow teammates. Because trust and timing remain crucial aspects of dance, Sujith found himself improving in the way he coordinated his fellow dancers.

“I felt myself grow as a leader and as a team member as well,” Sujith said. “It showed me the importance of staying coordinated; your timing has to be perfect. But at the end of the day, mentoring the kids is leading warm ups, leading stretches, things like that. So being captain is about helping everyone improve on the team and bringing everyone closer.”

Dhruv Saoji (12), who has been friends with Sujith since middle school, reflects on the dedicated work ethic and positivity Sujith brings to dance, whether it is through his leadership or his performances onstage.

“[Sujith] is super on top of things,” Dhruv said. “He always has a very good sense of organization and he’s always super passionate about what he does. And he’s always focused on how he can make whatever he does the best it can be. He looks like he’s having fun, though, and he always has a huge smile on his face.”

Close friend Nageena Singh (12) notes Sujith’s kindness and ability to spread his cheerfulness to others, as well as his selflessness, which she believes is crucial to his leadership.

“As a friend you can always count on [Sujith] if you’re down about something,” Nageena said. “He will to make jokes to crack you up and make you feel better … he’s also super kind and willing to sacrifice things for himself to do something for his friends. [He’s] people oriented.”

Inspired by the way dance never fails to imbue him with exhilaration and energy, Sujith decided to explore whether dance could exert the same effects on others and recently wrote a paper on whether dance therapy could help children and adolescents with cerebral palsy. Sujith also volunteers to teach dance to senior citizens. Through this experience, Sujith appreciated the way that dance could further bring him closer to those around him.

“People started opening up to me,” Sujith said. “I have a very specific memory at the end of our Zoom session, and the chatbox was flooded with thank you’s and comments such as ‘I really liked hip hop.’ It’s [rewarding] knowing that they’re liking what I’m doing.”

Whether it is with fellow members of Harker’s dance team or with members of the community beyond high school, Sujith cherishes the way dance has allowed him to form meaningful connections and foster a sense of bonding and camaraderie. Sujith looks to the skills of coordination and teamwork that he cultivates in dance as strengths that he will continue to apply in his future.

“That leadership experience and that teamwork experience is definitely the greatest,” Sujith said. “Because you literally have to move with each other, think with each other. So that teamwork that I’ve learned from dance is probably my most valuable experience in high school.”