It was Odissi that brought Maria Laura Valdez from the far-off South American country of Peru to Orissa four years back. And since then, she has made Bhubaneswar her second home. The young dancer says she finds divine solace in Odissi. She has been undergoing training at Srjan, a popular training centre, under the tutelage of Odissi exponents Sujata Mohapatra and Ratikanta Mohapatra.
Recently, Valdez was one among the 555 Odissi dancers who performed at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar to register a place for the dance form in the Guinness World Records.
Valdez found herself drawn to dance and music at the tender age of six. “In 2003, I came across a video of Sujata Mohapatra’s Odissi performance at a friend’s place. I was immediately struck by the elegance and charm of the dance form,” she adds. However, her training in Odissi was limited to these videos for some years. It was in 2006 that she got an opportunity to perform in India as a member of a symphony orchestra. “It was God’s grace that I got this chance to perform at Puttaparthy during a three-month tour. I found the coordinates of Sujata Mohapatra and landed at Srjan in 2007. Soon I earned a scholarship from my country to learn Odissi and ever since I have been under the tutelage of Sujata madam,” says Valdez.
The initial journey for her was not easy, though. She found it difficult to adapt. “Language was the biggest barrier. But I am glad that today, I can at least express myself in Odiya,” she says.
Besides Odissi, Valdez finds the temple architecture in Old Bhubaneswar ‘amazing’. Even as she spends a majority of her time learning dance, Valdez loves visiting temples besides places like Puri, Konark and Chilika when she is free.
“I have performed perhaps at all major places in Orissa in the last four years. It is great to see people here appreciate foreigners like us who are in awe of the cultural heritage of this state,” she says. The best thing about the place for Valdez, though, is its cuisine. “I love pakhala bhaata (ferment rice garnished with mustard and cury leaves), potala aloo bhaja (potala and potato fry), chenna poda (paneer cake) and gup chup (pani puri) the most. I have not had any issues with the food so far,” she smiles.
Valdez says her recent Odissi experience for the Guinness World Records was exhilarating. Valdez has performed Odissi in various parts of India as well as in her own country. “I want to popularise Odissi in Peru and perform regularly so that people there start understanding the art. I love being in Orissa, it has become a home away from home for me,” she says.
— diana@newindianexpress.com
