If you are an Indian born in or after the 90’s, you would sure have joined some kind of a dance
class as a child, or would have definitely been forced by your parents to get into one. We
happen to be writers cum part time old school philosophers, or ‘typers’ as to what the world
and its ways have made us, but we do realize that these two lovable expressions of the mind;
dance and writing- have a lot in common, to start a boastful all so ingenious (or rather,
INDIgenous *pun intended*) living room discussion. With fingers dancing on our keyboards,
here we go.
The moment the most patriotic word of all times; INDIAN, finds its way to your introduction,
you ought to have dance coded into your genome. As biology students, we learn about two
kinds of reflexes – conditioned and unconditioned. Conditioned is what we learn to do in
response to a particular stimulus, unconditioned is the one that comes, well, unconditionally;
from the heart. To those whom dance comes as an unconditioned reflex, it is the best feeling in
the world. The profound pumping of the heart, the jaunty feeling that it gives you - dance is a
heart-warming experience. For the others, who need some coaxing to get on the floor (but
then dance like they haven't danced in a millennium), it’s like they were birds trapped in cages.
Dance helps you vent out all that you have suppressed, be it happiness or despondence.
Of course, most Indians are to dance, what Karan Johar is to heterosexuality. And so as to not
let Bharat Maata down, the superstars of our country have coined up moves - thus impeding
the non-dancers from shaming themselves, and helping the moderate ones impress some girls
on the floor. Hrithik’s Ek Pal Ka Jeena; the pump and clean, or Salman Khan’s innumerable and
unforgettable steps, ranging from Jeene Ke Hain Chaar Din pelvic massage to Hud Hud Dabangg
belt flexing steps have got the whole population hooked on. And is nothing works, you always
have the ultimate weapon – The Naagin Dance.
Sometimes the congested dance floors do become a stage for Body Shake competitions, with
most men fighting for the coveted titles of ‘Who does the best pelvic thrust’, and the damsels
in distress pining for ‘Who has it better with elegantly managing the tight dress’ and ahh, their
Eiffel Towers of stilettos.
Garba to Bihu, Kathak to Kathakali. Hip-Hop to Ballet, B-boying to Contemporary. Dance is
always equal to happiness.
Be it the mini jig you do when you're happy or the unabashed thumkas under the shower
(singing Thande Thande Panni Se Nahana Chahiye), when it comes to dancing, all of India agrees
with Prabhu Deva on one thing – Any Body Can Dance. All you have to do is put up some beats,
and your crazy friends, or rather your ever ready set of back ground dancers, would always be
there with the perfect steps, born with the just right expressions; dazzling, in their great old
school overalls.
Everybody wants to tap a foot when Madhuri says Aaja Nachle, mimic the graceful lines of her
steps, watch her sculpting the aura around her. However, the ultimate truth of everything
between and beyond the Earth and Sky, is this harsh reality -sweaty armpits ho ya ho pair mein
dard, bhangra karne aatein hain sab desi mard xD
Though c’mon, who can resist the charm of a Dhinda Dhin Dha, or a buttering Bachchan step on
Jumma Chumma? How CAN anyone resist, we ask, if they have even ek chutki of Indian genes in
their DNA, dear reader baabu.
Jokes apart, now as our fingers slow down to finish their dance smoothly, we realize really how
connected writing and dancing are. The dancers enfold themselves on the stage as the first
beat of the song rushes in. They mix and match their steps to the steady rhythm, expressing
what the song couldn't, telling a story, which a normal conversation couldn't. Dance and its
numerous forms are nothing but the evolution of the human mind and its various turmoils,
synchronizing the hand and the leg to the order and chaos of the throbbing heart and the
resilient brain. Just like writing - where we start building up a story, convey to the readers our
deepest thoughts, and make order out of bizarre alphabets to share with the world what we
couldn’t do through speech. When writing combines with dance, the lovely metaphors of a
writer’s imagination adore the tapping dancer's chorus, as they engulf admiration in ecstasies
of euphoria. Authors WRITE to connect with the readers. Dancers have a better way of
accomplishing that - they DANCE to connect.
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Author: Isha Anand ( Visit blog at www.ishaanand.blogspot.in)
