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Varsha Seshan

Arangetram – Chaitrali, Diaspina and Purvi

August 11, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 4 Comments

“How was the Arangetram? How did Chaitrali do?” my mother asked. I had one word in response, “Moving.” And it was moving for more reasons than one. When Chaitrali, despite her hearing and speaking disability made her speech, many of us were in tears. “I thank the didis,” she said, painstakingly. “Varsha didi … Nisha didi […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, Arangetram, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

Arangetram

August 10, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

The Academy of Indian Dances welcomes you to the Arangetram of Chaitrali, Diya and Purvi. Chaitrali is a special girl with a hearing disability despite which she has persevered and come to this stage. Her Arangetram is a proud moment for her parents, her guru, and somehow by extension, all of us. Diya and Purvi […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, Arangetram, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

Day One: Abhinaya

July 26, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

The day was full of surprises, with just two participants for our workshop. We had questions about whether we should cancel. We decided against it, and perhaps it was a good thing. The workshop was an experience. Things that we had planned could not take place simply because there were not enough people. Yet, it […]

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme, workshop

Abhinaya – A Workshop on Indian Classical Dance

July 25, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

This weekend, we bring to you a dance workshop – Abhinaya …

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme, workshop

Technician

July 20, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

I have lost track of the number of times I have been in charge of lights and sound. As a small performing troupe, we can’t always afford a professional lights and sound manager. And we most certainly cannot afford to have a technician with us for all our practices. At IIM Indore, it was fascinating. […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: performance, programme

Nayanabhinaya

July 12, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

What is Nayanabhinaya? Divide the word and we get “Nayana” (eyes) and “Abhinaya” (loosely translated as expression). The eyes are an essential part of Indian classical dance, and that is one of the reasons why they are highlighted with thick kohl. The eyes express emotion and create beauty. Learn the basics of Nayanabhinaya at our […]

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme, workshop

Ashadi Ekadashi at Prashanthi Nilayam

July 11, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Standing there, behind the backdrop, we held our breath. We had been working with 43 Bal Vikas children with little or no knowledge of dance since May, and this was the outcome of all our efforts.   Working towards the performance for Ashadi Ekadashi at Prashanthi Nilayam was often frustrating, but ultimately, deeply rewarding. The […]

Filed Under: Children, Dance, Travel Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

Abhinaya: A Dance Workshop

July 1, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

What is abhinaya? Does it really just mean ‘expression’? Etymologically, abhinaya comes from two words ‘abhi’ (towards) and ‘niya’ (leading). So, Abhinaya leads you, the audience towards something. And what is that something? Rasa – aesthetic pleasure. Considering that these ideas come from the Natya Shastra, the abhinaya aspect of dance is linked to theatre […]

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, programme, workshop

Workshop Coming Soon …

June 29, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

We are conducting a dance workshop (followed by a performance) soon … I will share the details in the next few days!

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, India, performance, programme, workshop

Thank you!

April 28, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

For all those who came and watched me and listened to me at Art Hop Pune, thank you! I began with almost no one in my audience. In five minutes, there were over twenty people – a large number in such a small place. And as I was doing my last piece, the place was […]

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme, story, story-catcher, workshop

Lecture Demonstration at Art Hop Pune

April 27, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Nritta is one of the two pillars of the magnificent structure called dance. Nritta is pure technique, with no hidden symbolism, no complex meaning and no detailed explanation involved. What is the purpose, then, of nritta? That’s one of the modules of today’s lecture demonstration at Oakwood Sen5es at 5pm. Be part of Art Hop […]

Filed Under: Dance, Dance Workshops Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme, workshop

Ram Navami

April 8, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Three years ago, we performed on a beautiful stage as part of the Kannada Sangha celebrations in Pune. I can’t quite believe that it was three years ago. Waiting to perform again!

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, India, performance, programme

Arangetram

April 7, 2014 by Varsha Seshan 2 Comments

Often, invitation cards say that ‘Arangetram’ means ‘ascending the stage’. Theoretically, all of us know that it is our first stage programme. Then why is it supposed to be so perfect? It is a beginning, an entrance. We often widen our eyes and raise our eyebrows at students who perform their Arangetram ‘too early’. At […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: Arangetram, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, India, performance, programme

Baby Krishna

January 21, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Finally, here are a few photographs of the baby that everyone loved so much. It’s a doll, yes, a doll, made by my French mother. It’s not a real baby, no. We dressed it (her) as Baby Krishna for our performance in December – here are a few pictures!

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: art, Bharatanatyam, culture, France, French, India, performance, programme

Kelemen Quartet

January 20, 2014 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

What will I remember about this concert of the Kelemen Quartet’s a few years from now? The fact that it was the first time I watched a lady in a sari play the cello ? Maybe not. The music was so beautiful that I forgot within a few moments that people are usually so conscious […]

Filed Under: Music Tagged With: art, classical, concert, performance, programme

PMC Award!

December 31, 2013 by Varsha Seshan 3 Comments

When we introduce my teacher, we always talk about the prestigious Iyal Isai Nadagam award that she received. We have so many things to say about her, about countries she’s toured and things she has achieved. This time, we had the privilege of being present when Guru Mythili Raghavan received an award from the Pune […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, guru, Mythili Raghavan, performance, programme

Performed Yesterday!

December 18, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

There’s nothing in the world like the thrill of performing. Even if it’s just a tiny performance at my teacher’s place. Nothing much went wrong. There were no black-outs, but that was okay.I was to sit on a small wooden stool for one scene, but no one but I seemed to know where the stool […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

Performing on Tuesday

December 14, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

The thrill of performing is here again! A little performance, a private performance this time – not on a stage, and for barely twenty people. “We’ll do it in a very simple way,” said my teacher. “Those who are playing boys will dress in salwar-kameez. The girls will wear practice saris.” Doing it at my […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

Swarada Datar

September 28, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Where does the beauty of dance lie? When it comes to Bharatanatyam, particularly the Pandanallur style, surely it’s in the lines, the perfect geometry and the crisp, precise body movements. Whatever else may have been lacking, the geometry in Swarada’s dance was certainly perfect. Her performance was excellent. It’s rare for me to use a […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: Bharatanatyam, performance, programme, review

Yesterday

September 14, 2013 by Varsha Seshan Leave a Comment

Yesterday, we performed again. We were early. The audience was late. We started half an hour late, after our lovely organiser called out on the mike to the society and large, “Green Acres, come on, wake up! Get up and come to the clubhouse!” We took our own music system – a largish one that […]

Filed Under: Dance Tagged With: academy, art, Bharatanatyam, culture, performance, programme

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