What’s different about World Dance Day this year?

Four young dancers talk about why it’s the right time to willingly embrace digital

Somewhere in Chennai, a dancer moves all of the furniture to the corners of her cramped living room. She pulls out a black sari and threads it through her curtain rods, tugging at the ends to make sure natural light doesn’t interfere with the camera on her phone, positioned on a makeshift tripod at the far end of the hall. After a few quick stretches, she is ready for her performance.

Life during the pandemic has forced the translation of classical dance from a historical, embodied form into a handheld, on-demand viewing experience. The shift of the form, owing to the circumstances of the world moving online, has proven to be the next logical step in the evolution of the classical arts. Like every major shift, however, the online space is not without its controversies. The medium has brought a myriad of questions to the fore, including the relevance of repertoire, costume, duration and content of dance.

The balancing act

“If dance has evolved from the temple to the court to the proscenium, why can’t we embrace digital as yet another step in its progress?” asks Prateeksha Kashi. Kuchipudi teacher/performer at Shambhavi school of dance, she believes that there are advantages to the way dance has been practiced and taught during the pandemic. “An artiste can create impact if a performance is designed intelligently, with the ability to balance tradition with the cinematic medium,” she says, further adding that quarantine gave rise to online certification courses at Shambhavi that possibly would not have happened otherwise.

Yet, the digital medium presents difficult questions about what the dance aesthetic should be. While several young dancers found themselves in the unique position of becoming set designers, directors, and lighting designers, still others found that the core of their repertoire had to be edited for the digital medium. “While Bharatanatyam for the stage has a different dynamism and impact, our movements for the digital medium have to be camera-conscious,” says Mithun Shyam, a dancer, teacher and choreographer. He reflects on his training at Doordarshan as an important aspect in how he was able to cope with the filming and uploading. “Dropping to  muzhumandi suddenly or jumping into the air has to be thought through. After all, the camera is not a dancer.”

Shyam views the lockdown as a productive time for dance, as he had the opportunity to collaborate with artistes from around the world on the virtual medium.

The aesthetic of the camera, however, isn’t limited to the idea of movement. Dancers across forms have had to grapple with the changing notion of costume, jewellery, and lights.