With every step she takes towards the stage, the roar of claps increase by the seconds. Each member of the audience seems to be aware of the presence of Carolina Prada, the Mayurbhanj Chhau dancer hailing from Colombia. At her recently concluded show at the Cambridge School auditorium in New Friends Colony, Prada showcased her mastery over the dance form to reiterate the need to promote classical arts.
Dance is worship; only one who has God in his heart can appreciate a form of expression as beautiful as this, says the dancer. What attracted this Columbian to Mayurbhanj Chhau was the fact that it had a good mix of martial disciplines, as well as traditional moves that she had always been looking for. “When I saw it, I could not resist finding out and learning more,” she says, adding, “I don’t want to be a foreigner who looks like she is doing chhau. My dream is to dance exactly like a young boy from Mayurbhanj would. One day that will happen.”