*woosah*
See you all later.
14 years ago
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Contentment
Big word. Big meaning. So subjective. Yet attainable.
In small portions, at least.
Off late, with the recent situation at work and just living the life I live in today's world, I forgot the small things that made me feel good about myself. Small, intangible subjects that made me feel like a somebody, and worth something.
I dance. For as long as I can remember. Probably since I was 5. My forte, the Indian classical dance form called Bharatanatyam. Lemme tell you, I'm sure loads of Indian parents living out of India try their very best to instill a bit of culture in their children by enrolling them in classes related to Indian classical art forms, and so did my mom donkey years ago. How dreadful is to go for classes,when your Master whacks you when your hand gestures and movements are not perfect. And it's a bloody difficult form of dance. It was torture when it only meant fulfilling what your parents want you to do.
I performed for the first time when I was 9. Looking at the pictures of me dolled up in costumes and jeweleries brings back so many memories. How nerve-wrecking it was, but I enjoyed those times. Knowing, that lots of the other regular kids would have been home watching cartoons or playing with their siblings, and that I had something to call my own, something that made me different was a great feeling. I grew well into my teenage years with this in mind. And that's when I fell in love with dance.
No internet, no YouTube, no technology like these days to profess my love to the art form. All I had was to give it my gazillion percent at dance classes every Friday night.I no longer attended class because I had, I did it because I WANTED to. I must thank God, for he has blessed me with a great sense of rhythm and the gift of picking up dance moves real quick. It made me think to myself that maybe I was born to do this. Born to dance, born to teach dance, born to be a dance enthusiast. Something. Anything that was related to this art form.
Coming from a very small town ( at not exactly the town where performing arts is considered cool ), I seeked inspirations at dance performances that was staged in Ipoh. My mother and I NEVER missed any shows. I remember sitting amongst the audience thinking that one day the same hall will be filled with people watching me,and that actually has yet to happen. It was also then I came to know off Sutra Dance Theatre and it's inescapable association to the man who is not Indian but dances the Indian dance form like he is one. As every other performance I saw, Sutra and the whole picture it painted was an inspiration too me. And as a little kid, I wished that I could do major performances like that and that just seemed a faraway dream.
Never in the life of me did I imagine I would have the chance to perform there one day. And I did along with my dance school for 3 years in Alarippu to Moksha organized by Sutra. It was the greatest thing for me. Also, the fact that during the second year there was a super-tiny review written about me in the local daily was such a booster.
My going for Bharatanatyam classes reduced massively because I was going to college in a different city and I refused to enrol myself elsewhere. One thing, when you make a connection to a certain art form at a certain level, you NEVER betray the school that instilled that in you. If you need to spread your wings, ALWAYS seek permission from the it.
It wasn't until much later I enrolled in Sutra myself. Due to colleges and transportation problems, I couldn't joined them earlier. I started training in Odissi, which happens to be Sutra's major draw. It was great to dance again, and seeing the level of achivement one can attain here is exciting. It's the 4th year this year, and I have had the greatest experience being a student here. The people you meet, the teach of dance that you take, the level of maturity of my teachers are something I'll cherish for a long time.
Last week for the first time, I was a small part of Sutra's major production ( it's not even that major by Sutra's standard ). It was the first time I adorned an Odissi costume, headress, bells and people had to pay to come watch me ! *grins* I forgot what great fun it was to be on stage, to have you loved ones come tell you how well you did, in a dance form that I think I'm rather retarded at. I'm going to terribly miss the practices and hanging out with the dance-classmates. What a great feeling also, to be on the SAME stage with dancers who you've watched when you were much younger when they toured to your small town. The people you read about in the programme books they distribute at shows that you still have in your drawers. And for them to come tell you that I did a pretty decent job is the greatest feeling.
This show, Alarippu to Moksha 2009 has seriously reaffirmed the faith I have in me that one day I will a great dancer. Simply because I gave it my best, and enjoyed myself every single second of it. I've made new friends, had new experiences, mastered myself to be a better dancer and lived the worthiest time of my life in recent times.
I wonder what would I have become, should my parents allowed me to do this professionally? Should I have had a better platform and hence better exposure? Should I have forced myself to find a way to never have stopped dancing at one point? In my heart I know I wouldn't be this person I am if I didn't grow up with dance. Everyone, anyone owe it to the arts they practice moulding them to be a unique human being in their own right. I am not the best example of an angel, but I am a better human being than half the world because of my training in dance since young.
I plegded to myself to never abandon dance. I never would. Never could. Maybe that's why I even had this smallest chance of performing in places I never imagined I would. I don't know what my future is as a dancer, but I know dance will forever be my one definite contentment.
=)
Off late, with the recent situation at work and just living the life I live in today's world, I forgot the small things that made me feel good about myself. Small, intangible subjects that made me feel like a somebody, and worth something.
I dance. For as long as I can remember. Probably since I was 5. My forte, the Indian classical dance form called Bharatanatyam. Lemme tell you, I'm sure loads of Indian parents living out of India try their very best to instill a bit of culture in their children by enrolling them in classes related to Indian classical art forms, and so did my mom donkey years ago. How dreadful is to go for classes,when your Master whacks you when your hand gestures and movements are not perfect. And it's a bloody difficult form of dance. It was torture when it only meant fulfilling what your parents want you to do.
I performed for the first time when I was 9. Looking at the pictures of me dolled up in costumes and jeweleries brings back so many memories. How nerve-wrecking it was, but I enjoyed those times. Knowing, that lots of the other regular kids would have been home watching cartoons or playing with their siblings, and that I had something to call my own, something that made me different was a great feeling. I grew well into my teenage years with this in mind. And that's when I fell in love with dance.
No internet, no YouTube, no technology like these days to profess my love to the art form. All I had was to give it my gazillion percent at dance classes every Friday night.I no longer attended class because I had, I did it because I WANTED to. I must thank God, for he has blessed me with a great sense of rhythm and the gift of picking up dance moves real quick. It made me think to myself that maybe I was born to do this. Born to dance, born to teach dance, born to be a dance enthusiast. Something. Anything that was related to this art form.
Coming from a very small town ( at not exactly the town where performing arts is considered cool ), I seeked inspirations at dance performances that was staged in Ipoh. My mother and I NEVER missed any shows. I remember sitting amongst the audience thinking that one day the same hall will be filled with people watching me,and that actually has yet to happen. It was also then I came to know off Sutra Dance Theatre and it's inescapable association to the man who is not Indian but dances the Indian dance form like he is one. As every other performance I saw, Sutra and the whole picture it painted was an inspiration too me. And as a little kid, I wished that I could do major performances like that and that just seemed a faraway dream.
Never in the life of me did I imagine I would have the chance to perform there one day. And I did along with my dance school for 3 years in Alarippu to Moksha organized by Sutra. It was the greatest thing for me. Also, the fact that during the second year there was a super-tiny review written about me in the local daily was such a booster.
My going for Bharatanatyam classes reduced massively because I was going to college in a different city and I refused to enrol myself elsewhere. One thing, when you make a connection to a certain art form at a certain level, you NEVER betray the school that instilled that in you. If you need to spread your wings, ALWAYS seek permission from the it.
It wasn't until much later I enrolled in Sutra myself. Due to colleges and transportation problems, I couldn't joined them earlier. I started training in Odissi, which happens to be Sutra's major draw. It was great to dance again, and seeing the level of achivement one can attain here is exciting. It's the 4th year this year, and I have had the greatest experience being a student here. The people you meet, the teach of dance that you take, the level of maturity of my teachers are something I'll cherish for a long time.
Last week for the first time, I was a small part of Sutra's major production ( it's not even that major by Sutra's standard ). It was the first time I adorned an Odissi costume, headress, bells and people had to pay to come watch me ! *grins* I forgot what great fun it was to be on stage, to have you loved ones come tell you how well you did, in a dance form that I think I'm rather retarded at. I'm going to terribly miss the practices and hanging out with the dance-classmates. What a great feeling also, to be on the SAME stage with dancers who you've watched when you were much younger when they toured to your small town. The people you read about in the programme books they distribute at shows that you still have in your drawers. And for them to come tell you that I did a pretty decent job is the greatest feeling.
This show, Alarippu to Moksha 2009 has seriously reaffirmed the faith I have in me that one day I will a great dancer. Simply because I gave it my best, and enjoyed myself every single second of it. I've made new friends, had new experiences, mastered myself to be a better dancer and lived the worthiest time of my life in recent times.
I wonder what would I have become, should my parents allowed me to do this professionally? Should I have had a better platform and hence better exposure? Should I have forced myself to find a way to never have stopped dancing at one point? In my heart I know I wouldn't be this person I am if I didn't grow up with dance. Everyone, anyone owe it to the arts they practice moulding them to be a unique human being in their own right. I am not the best example of an angel, but I am a better human being than half the world because of my training in dance since young.
I plegded to myself to never abandon dance. I never would. Never could. Maybe that's why I even had this smallest chance of performing in places I never imagined I would. I don't know what my future is as a dancer, but I know dance will forever be my one definite contentment.
=)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Alarippu to Moksha 2009
Bharata Natyam & Odissi by Dancers of Sutra Academy
Artistic Direction : Ramli Ibrahim & Guna
Alarippu to Moksha plots the journey of a dancer from the first beginning to the attainment of absolute joy ( moksha) when Dance and the Dancer finds resonance in each other.
Alarippu to Moksha, started in 1997 as Sutra Dance Theatre's launching pad for it's new talents. This is a dance season featuring both Sutra's senior and upcoming dancers in compelling programs of Bharata Natyam and Odissi.
For Sutra watchers, Alarippu to Moksha is an excellent 3- day season to see up-close emerging talents - and they are plenty of them !
It is truly reaffirming to watch the young dancers projected to the fore with the challenges of new works. In
Alarippu to Moksha 2009 , the Sutra dancers are given the chance to empower themselves as they break new grounds, transcend fears and transform their own lives in challenging repertoires.
Watch new talents in an exciting programs of Bharata Natyam and Odissi which have been Sutra hallmarks and which had previously launched dancers who are now associated with Indian classical dance in Malaysia. Watch the new dancers close ranks with the seniors and negotiate their positions as stars in the making.
Date :
12 May (Tue) : Bharata Natyam
13 May (Wed) : Odissi
14 May ( Thu) : Odissi
Time : 8:00 PM
Venue : MTC Auditorium, Jalan Ampang
Tickets : RM 20 ONLY
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