New Delhi, Dec 13: Paris-based Indian dancer Rukmini Chatterjee, who is bringing together European classical ballet, Bharatnatyam and Kathak for the Bonjour Festival here, says she is not in favour of fusing dance forms and each style should retain its identity on stage.
The Bharatanatyam exponent also reveals that her next choreography, set to premiere in Paris in March 2010, is inspired by Hindu goddess Kali and explores the aggressive feminine force. Her performance in the capital Monday is titled Meetings Rencontre and will feature European classical ballet, European classical music, Bharatnatyam, Kathak and Indian traditional music. “The ensemble will comprise one Bharatnatyam dancer, three Kathak dancers, three Indian musicians and three European ballet dancers. Meetings Rencontre is a mix of mystical aspects of the Indian, French and the Sufi - three of the most widely-accepted cultures globally,” Chatterjee told in an interview.
The Bonjour Festival, inaugurated on December 1, is a two-month showcase of Indian and French cultures, literature, science and trade in India as part of a bilateral initiative by the two nations. It will close on January 31, 2010. Chatterjee’s recital on Monday is to be held in the capital’s Kamani Auditorium.
The dancer, well known on the global dance circuit, prefers diverse cultures coming together on stage but retaining their individual identities as compared to a fusion. “It is easier for two diverse dance forms from across two continents to meet on a common ground than fuse together to form a new fusion genre,” she said. “I feel the fusion of two dances is a long-drawn affair. Two diverse dance genres take years to blend and give birth to a new fusion form. It is much easier for two diverse dance forms to meet on stage, centred around a common theme. They can co-exist. Fusion takes away from the originality and identity of a particular form,” explained Chatterjee, who has trained under danseuse Mrinalini Sarabhai for 20 years in Ahmedabad. (IANS)
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