KOCHI: The glass is always half full. Always appreciate the positive aspects of everything. That’s the way to enjoy and appreciate your life: This was the advice Perumbavoor native Reshma Rajeev received from her dance teachers. “I will always keep this advice close to my heart. When you appreciate the positive things, you are able to give 100 per cent in everything. And that gives one peace of mind,” she says. The bharatanatyam dancer performed at Changampuzha Park on Friday evening.
Speaking to Express before her performance, Reshma was in high spirits and she gushed about the impending rangapooja of her students in August. “It is a proud moment for me. My teachers including Kalamandalam Sumathi, her brother Ravi Kumar and those at Kalakshetra Chennai made me the person I am today. A young teacher myself, I want to create a similar impact on my students,” she says.
All of 25, Reshma’s training in bharatanatyam began when she was six. “I was one of those students who went to dance classes reluctantly. It was just another extra-curricular activity. But my attitude began changing during my teen years. Around that time, I started to perform at school events. I began understanding the meanings and emotions in each dance move,” she says. It became a part of her life.
For those asking if classical art forms are still relevant in these fast times, Reshma says dance has changed her outlook towards life.
“It has always been and it will always be. Bharatanatyam, like other ancient art forms, is the perfect media to express your thoughts and emotions, and convey your ideas. Music and dance have always held the power to change a person. For me, when I have bad or negative thoughts, my mind suddenly reaches the right focus the minute I begin performing. Personally, dance soothes me. It changes your personality. Because each choreography is based on stories of gods and about the victory of good over evil, it literally becomes impossible for you to be angry or rude at someone,” she says.
The dancer, who completed her post graduation in bharatanatyam from Madras University, is full of dreams.
“My immediate dreams are to secure a doctorate in dance and learn more about the concept of ‘nattuvangam’. In the long run, I want to make my mark in the dance field and most importantly, be a better version of myself,” she says. Millennially speaking, she has complicated dreams like everyone.