It’s a loud and clear call. Sharp as a tack. Not from outside, but from deep inside. It says, ‘Self-realisation is the key to solitude.’ The journey is different for everybody, but they must take it on their own. Odishi dancer Sharmila Biswas understands that well. She communicates her stance through Antar Yatra: The Journey Within, an upcoming show of three dance styles—Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi and Odishi.
Organised as a fundraiser for AIM for Seva, a not-for-profit organisation which works towards making educational facilities accessible to the underprivileged children in rural India, it gives the audience a glimpse to the inner world of the women dancers of India. “I am seeking to bring out the inner emotions of these women, allowing their aatma, (soul) to speak,” says the choreographer-director.
Songs sung in six languages, with many different narrators, the event will see Kuchipudi dancer Amrita Lahiri, Bharatanatyam dancer Lakshmi Parthasarathy Athreya and Odishi dancer Sashwati Garai Ghosh. In the production, the technique of shadow puppetry and stagecraft play a major role in creating the feeling of a stage within a stage. Through this, the audience is allowed to travel between the real and the make-believe. “I would like the audience to take back new ideas and perspectives to ponder. I want my audience to agree and disagree. I do not want them to think of my work as pretty dances. Instead, I’d like to create works in which there is active communication, not passive entertainment,” says Biswas, whose individuality is her driving force. “We cannot get far with copy paste work. Even our gurus’ teachings have to be rediscovered and made personal,” she says. Dance has filled her life with many wonders and she looks forward to turning new chapters each day.