Body Image Issues in Dance Spaces - Blog 15

 Body image issues in dance classes are far more common that people realise, and they often reveal themselves in the most subtle ways. One will clearly notice it the minute a plus size dancer performs beautifully and someone says "wow she dances so well despite her weight", as if talent is supposed to belong only to a certain body type. The surprise people express is not really a compliment, it comes from a deep, ingrained bias that dancers must look slim, toned and must have an aesthetic figure to be a good dancer. If this discrimination never existed from the beginning, dancers today would feel comfortable wearing whatever they want to class, without worrying about whether their body "looks like it belongs" on the floor. 

Yesterday I came across this reel where Karan Johar was giving an interview. He was talking about a new song from his movie where a plus sized dancer got featured and he praised him for her confidence and dancing skills. I rushed to the comments and saw people agreeing to him. But my question was, why? Is it not normal for a plus size dancer to feel confident and dance the way as if she owns the stage? We have normalised discriminating dancers based on their body type so much that one get amazed when a plus sized artist is comfortable with their own body. 

Another uncomfortable truth is how differently women dress depending on who is in the room. In an all female class with mostly female students, dancers open up, wear fitted outfits as per their choice and express themselves freely. But the moment a class has 80 or 90 percent male students, the same female dancers show up to the class in oversized t-shirts and sweatpants, not because those clothes are comfortable but because they are scared of being visually sexualised by the male dancers in the room. This constant negotiation with one's body, either hiding it or proving it; creates an environment where many dancers shrink themselves instead of fully expressing their art. 

As a new age choreographer today, one has to slowly work on removing this already set discrimination. Because, honestly the problem is not that plus size dancers lack confidence, the problem is that audience lacks acceptance. The dance community does preach that art has no boundaries but it subconsciously sets boundaries on who should look a certain way while doing their art. And, till choreographers step up and take stern changes, these boundaries would not fade. 

So, where do we begin to fix this mindset? First, by changing the choice of words we use to compliment dancers. Compliments like 'despite her size' or 'she moves well for her body type' need to disappear, because kindness wrapped in bias, is still bias. Second, choreographers must consciously build classes where dancers of all body types are treated in the same way. When a teacher does not hesitate to give a plus size dancer a solo in front of a class of 40 dancers, the entire room automatically resets its mindset. 

Lastly and most importantly, we as dancers also have to stop apologising for our bodies and how we present it in a class. We should not shy away fom taking up space to do a step full out. The more we normalise confidence in every body type, the sooner others will stop treating it like a surprise. 

Shreya Roy Choudhury