How Helpful is the Dance Community? Blog 7

 

Dance is often seen as a world built on movement, discipline and artistic expression; but anyone who has spent a good time being a part of the dance community knows there is something much bigger at play. Dance cannot flourish because of the technique alone. It also flourishes because of the people you know, the partnerships and the communities dancers create around themselves. 

One of my strongest beliefs is that dance never exists in isolation. A performance isn't just an eventful evening on stage filled with colourful lights, it is the result of collaborations with studios, costumer organizations, student groups, small business, sound engineers and the wider local community. All these network contribute to a single moment of art. Yes, on the stage, the dancers are the one who shine, but it is also the hard work put in by these networks to make those dancers shine on stage. 

But, beyond helping just a programme night survive, these networks that are built also contributes to shaping a dancer's journey in ways we mostly don't notice. Every introduction, every workshop and every collaboration becomes a seed of opportunity. The world of dance does have its own way of letting these seeds grow into opportunities one could never have predicted. 

What if I tell you, a few weeks ago, I worked in an AR Rahman music video? You would probably not even be ready to hear me out. 

It might not have been the role of the lead actress or the lead dancer of the music video, but I was one of the background dancers in it. Yesterday, I received the payment from that shoot and I was very proud of myself. 

It was not my first income, but it definitely was my first income coming from doing something that I have always wanted to pursue professionally. I wanted to show my parents that having a career in dance does not make one "unemployed", instead demands more hours of work than a corporate employee would every do. At least they get Sundays and paid leaves, I had to leave for my technical rehearsals at 4 am on a Sunday morning, catch a local to CSMT and work till 11 at night. Provided the saturday before that, I had a consultancy visit which I absolutely could not miss. 

My body finally showed its signs of exhaustion with fever and bleeding nose. I hate the fact of being sick but it is such a big privilege to be busy doing what you have always wanted to do. I can exceed 1000 words writing about how I felt during that weekend, but it would still not do justice. 

So, being a newbie to Mumbai, just 4 months into the dance community, still knowing people here, how did I bag a dance gig? When I shared this news to my friends I got constant "kitni lucky hai yaar tu".

Luck? Where was luck here?

Constantly messaging people with your availability and interest to work on a project, reaching out to them relentlessly and not being disheartened after not being shortlisted for all the 10 previous projects you had applied for, is definitely not luck. 

But, there I was, standing at the gate of St. Xaviers College, Mumbai, palpitating seeing all the big vanity vans, sets, costumes and the people. It really was a dream come true. 

Everything boils down to reaching out to the right people at the right time. One never knows what works for them but that should not stop them from trying and reaching out. That is the reality and thats how business works. And, especially in Mumbai, where 100 other people are ready to jump to take your opportunity, the moment you hesitate; fear has to take a backseat, if you want to start a career as a dancer. 

The community is there to help you, but you have to make the first move. You do it once, twice, thrice and the fourth time, whenever they have an opportunity, the community will reach out to you. It is my promise. 

Shreya Roy Choudhury