Dancing against the norms …
Can we fight all the bad things by dancing? Without getting angry, not growing … just dancing it all away? I never thought of a strong voice of activism through a group of 90 adult dancers. All dressed up, dancing with Rabindra Sangeet through the beautiful choreography of Arhty Ahmed. It was against all the expectations of what adult women should and should not do.
I am a proud student of Arthy Ahmed’s dance movement to include adults in classical dance lessons. I joined with a friend and my dear spouse when the second batch of adult beginners started classes. My daughters were Arthy Madam’s students and told us how strict she would be! We found it to be exactly the opposite; we learned with so much care — all the mistakes, forgetfulness, and cracking noise from old knees …. were handled with compassion and love. Handling students like us is way harder than the ones I handle at undergraduate levels; I am 100% sure about that! And it was all to make the dream come true.
How difficult can it be for women to learn dancing after a certain age? The ones who joined us as peers are the ones who have the strength to fight society’s barriers. But starting this had its own set of fights. Comments were made to Arthy Ahmed about taking this non-traditional route. Many doubted it would be sustainable, and many laughed it out. And the dancers, they have people like me — a moga-person who never did anything even close (I only had storybook reading as a hobby, never did any outdoor or indoor physical activities). And still, I cannot imagine myself doing something like this for real, it's huge for me!
This opportunity created a statement that we can chase our dreams- the tiniest one, the craziest one, and the most impossible one. And when an old lady like me should be resting and thinking, adding a bit of dance to it does not hurt, especially when it makes a movement against what is right for women, defined by cultural norms, religious values.
Please keep it up, dear Arthy Madam; we will march after you. Thank you so much for making it happen. It is disruptive, and it's making waves. I am so proud to be part of this journey. Thank you!
** You can hear from from here.
