Shagun Butani is rehearsing in her hotel room where she runs through her intricate steps and movements. She wears a long cotton slip over a leotard and stockings and moves around softly on her bare feet.
”Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to be a dancer,” Butani says. ”I danced various dance forms, but I then discovered Orissi. It has a lyrical quality, which is very appealing to me,” she says.
Butani started to study Orissi – a classical Indian dance form — almost 20 years ago. The dance form originated in the region of Orissa, in eastern India. The inspiration of its ”feminine style” comes from the voluptuous sculptures found on temple walls in Orissa.
Butani says has been exposed to various dance forms during the course of her career and studied modern dance in New York for over a year. At first it was quite an adjustment for her.
”It was difficult to get used to wearing a leotard; I had to shed my inhibitions,” she said. For her, the experience ”infused a new sensibility” into her work, and caused her to revive her interest in Orissi dance.
”The music is a very important aspect of the dance,” she says. For her performance, Butani is accompanied by four musicians who sing, play the sitar, the mardal (drum) and flutes. They are freelancers specialising in classical Indian music. During the rehearsal, they cram onto the floor; barefoot and cross-legged, chewing betel leaves.
Butani says the it takes her approximately two hours to do her make up and her hair. Her costume is a sari from the Orissa region. Every region in India has its own weave of sari. Hers has been custom-made by a tailor to allow for dance movements. Butani feels the outfit does hide the movements to some extent, ”but the costume brings out the beauty of the dance”.
”The costume and dramatic make up is meant to look out of the ordinary because it transports you into another world,” she says of the performance.
”It is a very traditional performance consisting of six compositions. The first composition is a prayer; asking the earth permission to dance on it, and to Shiva, the god of dance,” she says.
The dance is inspired by the love of Lord Krishna for a woman called Radha. Their love is immortalised in Sanskrit poetry. ”The union between lovers is a reflection of the union between human life and the supreme life,” she says.
Butani does not consider herself a very religious person but her experience of dance is ”very spiritual”. ”All art forms connect to your soul,” she says. ”I understand the religion, but it is the spiritual experience that connects people through the dance,” she says.
She feels that non-Hindu audiences could still connect with the universal emotions conveyed through the dance. In her experience, western audiences have been very receptive to past performances.
Butani says there are difficulties for aspiring dancers in India because ”it takes long to establish yourself”.
”I was lucky enough to have support from my family, so I have the luxury of pursuing my dance career,” she adds. She currently lives in Delhi as a full-time professional dancer and teacher.
She says the Indian government has been very supportive, sponsoring the travel of dancers and musicians to countries all over the world. However, this is her first visit to Africa.
The group will be travelling to Durban, Cape Town and Reunion after their appearance at the festival. – ECN-Cuewire