Finding a Signature Style: Why Every Dancer Needs a Personal Language

 It is all fun and games to learn a choreographed piece and then perform it out. That is how the workshop culture has been expanding in India since 2021. Take the major metro cities, Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore; all of a sudden choreographers started taking workshops on choreographed pieces and every class was housefull, completely sold out. 

Instagram played a major role in uplifting these creators. Now, those creators are taking classes all over the world. 

But what about those dancers who do not want to stick to learning pieces choreographed by others? What if they want to create something of their own and perform it out. 

With workshop culture increasing, dancers are slowly forgetting to give importance to having a personal style. They are learning what is being taught. Spoonfeeding. And, art cannot survive with copy and paste. 

And that’s where the conversation around having a personal style comes in, not in a moral, “you must do this” way, but in a very real, very practical sense. Because whether we talk about it or not, every dancer does move in their own way. Some discover it early, some much later, and some don’t notice it until someone else points it out.

When one steps away from learning choreographed sets for a moment, they realise how differently the body reacts to the same piece of music compared to someone else’s. Maybe you hit sharper. Maybe you melt into the groove. Maybe you take an extra second before a transition because it sets right with the way you catch beats. These small decisions which we consciously don't think about, slowly start forming one's movement identity.

And honestly, it’s quite interesting to watch.


Because the moment a dancer leans into their natural instinct, their performance automatically looks more honest. We have heard teachers say "do not copy what I do, do in your own way"; and that's the honesty they often refer to. 

It’s not about abandoning workshops or rejecting choreography. It’s just about not letting that be the only space one explores. The workshop culture has given dancers incredible exposure, but it has also made many of us forget to pause and ask "could have I done it differently?"

Sometimes the answer surprises you.

Sometimes it becomes the starting point of a style you didn’t even know you were capable 

And maybe that’s the whole point, not chasing a signature style, but noticing it when it quietly starts forming on its own. 

Shreya Roy Choudhury

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