Happy Aching Eardrums

Tuesday January 16 (video to follow soon)

First of all wishing you a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATHER – Hope you had a lovely day with friends and family!!!.

For us January 16 was also a very special day. Stationed in our very lovely Hotel Bombay , with the friendliest hassle free staff, we started the day with chai, orange juice and alu paratha. We also enjoyed catching up with the action of the Australian Open live from Melbourne via cable TV, but soon had to tear ourselves away, to go to the famous Kalavikas Kendra auditorium.

Harshid, his sister Puja, and the 2 dance teachers who are learning classical dance from Sandeep, (whose names are Srikanth and Santosh), were performing during the morning session. Oh and just to fill everyone in, the previous evening was the opening of the 7th International Children’s Theatre Festival. Sandeep had been feeling very sick all day with a cold and flu, and we had tried everything to get him well in a hurry, as he was to be a special guest on the opening night. Freya was also on stage handing out flowers and banners to the invited special guests, and Sandeep received a special award and plaque for his contribution to the festival. He was not feeling too crash hot to receive it, and was in fact expecting it on the following day.

Anyway, Freya performed 2 dances in Bharatanathyam style, which went down very well. As usual the local TV channel was interviewing Freya and Sandeep, and so many were interested in the Aussie girl. We talked with a local Odissi dancer, and she just could not believe that Freya was from Australia, once she was in all her dance gear. I think she also did not believe that Freya could actually dance like an Indian, and was very surprised at her performance. She was really very sweet and incredibly thrilled to see Freya dressed up like an Indian.

 

So we spent the morning in the auditorium cheering on Sandeep’s students, who all did very well in their performances. I spent the whole time coughing – a horrible persistent dry cough that I have managed to pick up, and it was such a bore. We had also accidentally placed ourselves right near the speaker stacks, and for some pieces of music in particular the sound was incredibly distorted and totally earsplitting! One of the organizers really wanted to invite us for an authentic lunch, but by 2pm when all the dances were over, we had to evacuate back to the hotel with our ringing ears, to collapse for a while. Nevertheless, it was pretty interesting watching all the varied performances, especially some amazing modern dances with so much energy, or as they would aptly say here with TOO much energy. Really they have to be seen to be believed! So too the costumes!!!

After a short respite, the make-up artist arrived at our hotel room, and again it was time to get Freya into her gear – I was kind of thankful that it would be for the last time in a while. Anyway, it all went without a hitch, and we were ready early to head for the stage. We got there in time for a wonderful group performance from the state of Gujarat, which included a maypole, where many saris would be platted by the dancers into a beautiful colourful rope by the end of the dance.

In the meantime Freya was ready to perform 3 Kuchipudi dance items, and we were especially exited for her to perform the new dance she had learnt from the amazing legend Radheshyam. And it did indeed became the Piece de Resistance for her on the night. I was manning the iPod on the side of the stage and was really enjoying it, feeling much more relaxed. Freya was in her best form thus far. After the performance, Freya and Sandeep went to speak with the judges. One of them said, but that was not pure Kuchipudi?! Sandeep later told me that he was fuming inside, and informed her that Freya had learnt from the masters themselves of Kuchipudi village. It turned out she had never seen Kuchipudi dance before. Freya was called to the stage, and so too Guy and I, where she received a beautiful trophy from the Theatre Movement (which is affiliated with UNESCO, Denmark) and certificate. She was wrapped.

In the meantime Sandeep had received an invitation for Freya to go directly to perform at a festival on another stage in town. So after all the officialdom was finished, we were on our way to a much more amazing event than this first one. We drove through the 1000 year old city by 3 wheeler rickshaw, and as the streets got narrower we arrived at our destination, the end of a narrow street. At the end of this street, which could probably only accommodate one normal sized car in Australia, was a narrow stage, complete with curtain and lights. In fact the whole street was lit up as this was the main day of the Pongal (or winter holiday) festival. The end of this street was full of people, which were pouring out of every nook and cranny.

The atmosphere was lovely, and it reminded me of villages we had visited when we toured Maharastra 18 years back. Sandeep said that this was a celebration in true village style, and it really did feel like we were in the centre of a village in the countryside. Our party was whisked into a house in the street where we were seated comfortably – amazing how many persons can sit in one small room in a house in India. I assisted Freya in a visit to the toilet, which was quite a procedure, with all that dance gear on. Then she and Sandeep went to the stage, and I got out the iPod & speakers and we were ready to roll. This stage was no more than a few metres wide and was covered in loose cotton carpets. But Freya just flew across the floor effortlessly, and during her really fast movements the strobe lights came on, turning her dance into a whole new style of production. It was such fun.

We happened to be in the front row right under the speakers again, and in true Indian fashion, or ears felt like they were going to burst. I am now sure that Indian people are definitely much more thick skinned even down to the ear canals! But there was so much joy and happiness in the air, that we all could not help but enjoy ourselves to the fullest. They passed us lovely chai and coffee, and could not do enough to look after us. Santosh and Shrikanth did a couple of really lively dance pieces too, which were also a big hit with the audiences. Then again Freya and her mum and dad were invited to the stage, where Freya was handed yet another trophy by the deputy mayor of Cuttuck. I was then asked to say a few words, and by complete chance really hit it off by saying that we would never forget this wonderful night here in the ancient city of Cuttuck, which was met with a roaring applause. There was a lot of love in the air. It was magical. After the performance, we were again seated in the house, and were served samoosas, sweets and lemonade. This was very much welcomed by the kids, and especially for Caspar, who is always looking forward to the next meal. We departed this magical scene, and headed back very tired, relieved, and overjoyed by this very memorable Pongal night in the old Orissan city of Cuttuck.