Who is Sriya, India’s first K-Pop star?:Left Odisha for South Korea at 18; selected from 40,000 contestants, now charges ₹6 lakhs per show

In 2020, Shriya Lenka, a resident of Jharsuguda in Odisha, was looking for a career in the music industry. She auditioned for several reality shows, got selected in the initial rounds, but ultimately faced rejection. In November 2020, Korean pop band Blackswan started searching for a new member. It was the Covid period, so virtual auditions were held. Shriya learned about this from a friend. She started practicing at home. She passed 4 rounds of auditions among 40,000 candidates and surprised everyone by getting selected in the Blackswan band. On May 26, 2022, she became India’s first K-pop star. She has been part of this band in Korea for the past 3 years. She charges a fee of 6 lakh rupees per show. When South Korea’s President Lee Jae-myung came on an India tour on April 19, he too did not forget to mention Shriya. However, Shriya’s journey to reaching the K-pop band was not easy. Going to Rourkela every week for training and not having money for tickets Born in Rourkela, Shriya studied in Jharsuguda. She learned Odissi dance here. When she couldn’t find a teacher for freestyle dance, she took training in Rourkela for two days on weekends with her father. Shriya comes from a middle-class family, so financial constraints always shadowed her. She says, ‘Many times we didn’t have money for travel tickets. It was difficult to travel even in the general coach of the train. Then Papa would hold me in his lap and travel standing, so that practice wouldn’t be missed.’ Rejected from 40 reality shows, father boosted her confidence
While learning dance, Shreya auditioned for several major reality shows like ‘Dance India Dance’. She would pass the initial rounds but would be rejected in the end. Shreya was eliminated from around 40 reality shows. She says, ‘Wherever I auditioned, I only got rejection. In these shows, I also witnessed discrimination many times, because here more importance was given to contestants’ ‘struggle stories’ and sob stories rather than talent. No matter how good the dance is, but if you don’t have a sob story, you get left behind.’ ‘Whenever we filled forms for any reality show, Papa would leave columns like ‘Family Struggle’ blank. I once asked why we weren’t writing about our problems, then Papa said that I don’t want anyone to take you forward out of pity or sympathy. You should move ahead on the strength of your dance and talent.’ Dance classes closed during Covid, but Shriya’s journey began
Shriya was disappointed by rejections in reality shows. Due to Covid, lockdown was imposed in 2020 and her dance classes also closed. Her father was doing a private job, which was also lost. Then Shriya had made up her mind to quit dance, but Papa encouraged her.’ Father Abinash Lenka said to Shriya, ‘If you are right, don’t pay attention to anyone’s words, just keep working hard. I see my victory on your face. Now you decide whether you want to make me win or lose?’ ‘Meanwhile, I learned about K-pop auditions from friends. They told me that South Korea’s company DR Music is looking for a new member for their global girl group ‘Blackswan’. Until then, I didn’t know much about K-pop. I gathered information about it together with friends and sisters and considered it the last opportunity of my life.’ 6 hours of dance moves, 8 hours of vocal practice, then got selected
To prepare for the audition, Shriya turned her room into a training center and the house terrace into a stage. She would practice stunts and dance for 13-14 hours on the terrace in the scorching heat. However, just knowing dance wasn’t enough to become part of K-pop. Learning the Korean language, its accent, and improving vocals were also necessary. She would listen to Korean songs late into the night, write down their lyrics, and then learn to speak Korean on the internet. Shriya explains, ‘Auditioning for K-pop meant doing live singing along with choreographed dance. Before selection, I would practice vocals for 8 hours every day. Then I would perfect my dance moves for 6 hours. 40 thousand girls from around the world were competing for one seat, so I had no room for error.’ ‘There were about 4 rounds of virtual auditions. I passed one after another. The final round was against Gabriella Dalcin from Brazil, and I won that too. When the final selection call came in May 2022, there was no limit to the happiness at home.’ Mother was not ready to send her to Korea alone
Shriya further says, ‘Now I had to go to South Korea alone for training. I was only 18 years old then. Mother was just not ready to send me alone. She clearly said that whatever you want to do, do it in India, you won’t go abroad alone.’ ‘Then Papa lied to Mom along with the family. She was told that Papa was also going to Korea with me. He went with me till Delhi, but from there I traveled the rest of the journey alone. When Mom found out the truth, she was angry at first, but seeing me safe, her anger subsided.’ She further explains, ‘The real test began after reaching Korea. Here I had to undergo tough training, for which my entire lifestyle had to be changed. I was given a strict diet chart. I had to wake up at 4 AM and do body stretching. Then advanced classes in Korean language, vocal training and dance synchronization practice continued till 11-12 at night.’ After one year of training, Shriya was officially launched with the band on May 19, 2023. She is still in South Korea and is continuously doing shows with DR Music’s Blackswan band. DR Music pays her a fee of 6 lakh rupees per show. In three years, Shriya’s net worth has reached around 7 crores. On her success, father Abinash says, ‘It’s good that Shriya was not selected in those reality shows, if she had been selected, she wouldn’t have made history by becoming India’s first K-pop idol. It was written in her destiny to do something big.’