Anupama Jha from Vietnam takes the Delhi stage by storm

Anupama Jha claims she is taking the ‘scenic route’ in life. This refers to the bliss she feels through Kathak, which obliterates the stressful demands of her corporate career in an international software firm as well as those of her domestic life. “I hope to set an example for people, that work and family life can be balanced with a pursuit of the arts or following your passion. In fact, it is the best way to achieve fulfilment in life.”

For her first live performance ‘Swayatra – Journey of the Soul Reflecting the Chaturashram of Human Life’, at New Delhi’s Stein Auditorium at India Habitat Centre, she has flown all the way from Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. Her passion for Kathak is evident, but this wasn’t always the case. “I started learning Kathak when I was five-six years old. I was brought up in Patna, and my father was interested in classical fields. He was a painter himself and was keen that I pursue Kathak. I enjoyed it but at that age, I wasn’t committed to it, so I dropped it after school. I tried picking it up again after I had a child and moved to Singapore but couldn’t stick with it,” she laments.

Things changed after the pandemic, when she connected with renowned Kathak exponent Padma Shri Guru Dr Shovana Narayan. Didi, as Jha refers to her Guru, started online classes, allowing people from all over the world to learn the popular Indian classical dance style from a master exponent of it. For two years, four times a week, Jha trained online, starting from the basics of Kathak till she mastered its movements and expressions.

This tremendous leap could be put down to her skill as a dancer and her eagerness to learn, but Jha has a different explanation for it. She shares with candour, “Kathak is no longer a dance form for me, it is now a metaphysical world. It allows me to experience a very intense kind of energy, which is quite like meditation. These feelings can be compared to the pleasure that Gods like Krishna and Shiva are described as feeling when they dance. And it’s all thanks to my Guru – she taught me the essence of Kathak.”

The Guru is equally impressed with her disciple. After Jha’s performance, Dr Shovana Narayan waxed lyrical on her student’s prowess. She said, “I’m impressed with her hard work. For me it was like teaching someone from scratch, even though she thought she knew the basics. I worked hard with her, and she worked equally hard with me. One must clap with both hands after all! It’s quite amazing that everything happened online. It really says something about online teaching. But I feel it has to be followed up with the physical part of it for refinement.”

It was Jha’s choice to perform in Delhi for the first time, as it was easier for her to travel than to have the troupe of live musicians fly to Vietnam. Further, coming to India allowed her the requisite in-person practice time with her Guru before the show. She arrived six days before the slated performance and practiced day and night to perfect her movements to the rhythm of live instruments, previously having done so exclusively on recorded pieces. Her dedication and hard work shone in her confident, sinuous movements and dramatic, alluring expressions. Each dance was punctuated with in-depth explanations of the choreography following the Swayatra theme. The audience went along with her on a journey through life across various stages.

Included in the august gathering were esteemed luminaries like film maker and designer, Muzaffar Ali, his wife Meera Ali, Dr Vijay Chauthaiwale from the Foreign Affairs Department, Asha Kamal Modi of Art Karat, actress Joyshree Arora, Odissi dancer Sharon Lowen and Isha Bhandari. Ali specifically praised her skill and tenacity of pursuing the art with such precision, despite the odds.

Enjoying the fruits of her labour, Jha’s elated Guru, Dr Narayan closed off the show with these poignant words, “We need more artists like her, who are willing to do the tapasya. They are willing to go through the rigours to achieve perfection, by going to the depth of the dance form, by surpassing the superficiality of it. She was a crucible, a sponge who wanted to take it all in, and it felt amazing to have a student like her. In fact, it’s important for all the performing arts to have students like her. She is from the corporate world, yet so focused, dedicated, and grounded. She understands the value of our traditional classical rich heritage.”

Noor Anand Chawla pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com.

Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News,
India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.