"We are approaching a major turning point in world history... It is a juncture at which concepts suddenly become hazy, lose their precise contours, at which our familiar and commonly used words lose their meaning."
- Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Russian authorAnd here we are again!
It's the beginning of the month and I am sharing my thoughts and ideas of what has intrigued me or tugged at my mind screen these past 30 days.
The acclaimed words of the Russian author return to our minds as we see the end of a tumultuous Indian election, the looming uncertainty of the US elections, the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Russia, Israel, and Palestine - a divided population and a socio-political landscape where lies speak louder than truths. How do these macro events filter into the lives of dancers and musicians for better or worse? We cannot ignore the growing power of social media about which I shall comment on later in this edition.
With Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni making the Namaste an internationally accepted gesture which became viral at the G7 meeting, I will open this ANITA SAYS iteration with a Namaste to all of you. What I am sharing are not declarations, but ideas that I hope can stimulate more discussion, conversation, and hopefully, feedback.
It's the beginning of the month and I am sharing my thoughts and ideas of what has intrigued me or tugged at my mind screen these past 30 days.
The acclaimed words of the Russian author return to our minds as we see the end of a tumultuous Indian election, the looming uncertainty of the US elections, the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Russia, Israel, and Palestine - a divided population and a socio-political landscape where lies speak louder than truths. How do these macro events filter into the lives of dancers and musicians for better or worse? We cannot ignore the growing power of social media about which I shall comment on later in this edition.
With Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni making the Namaste an internationally accepted gesture which became viral at the G7 meeting, I will open this ANITA SAYS iteration with a Namaste to all of you. What I am sharing are not declarations, but ideas that I hope can stimulate more discussion, conversation, and hopefully, feedback.
Please provide your name / email id along with your comment. Anonymous and derogatory comments will be removed.
Anita ji, thanks for your comment about "Reel versus Real".
ReplyDeleteyou are so right about the instagram influence on our young dancers. one of my student said that he wants to become a virtual dancer ,,,,, what to say!!!! Taking this in account i am going to start a new series for young [under 40] kathak dancers to dance one and a half hour at least [ unlike 2 or 5 minuets reel or maximum 15 minuets performance on screen] and say about the design of their performance and then face the senior gurus.
We have lost the honest criticism as well as the appreciation. Young dancers are not ready to face it, every performance is becoming a self appraisal [ fantastic, great, got the standing ovation, so well received etc,etc.] . I think they should experience the great tradition of the detailed performances and the magic of holding the audience or "Rasikas" through out the presentation.
Just want to do my share in a small way. The first of this series would be on 20th july 2024 in Jaipur. Thanks.
On the topic of #WOKE-ISM AND THE PUSHBACK...
ReplyDeleteDissent and disruption are signs of a healthy ecosystem. There will always be those trying to direct narratives towards their own personal value systems and beliefs. As long as there is nourishing conversations inclusive of agreements and disagreements, the construct of evolution will move on, hopefully without more violence. Single narratives and stories seem to be the order of the day. Social Media can awaken us to multiple narratives. The onus lies on the viewer or reader to observe their own personal objectivity.
On the topic of Institutions -
Hallowed institutions and their relevance need to be re-looked in today's context, just as much the artistic content. A call out for this re-look is not to be viewed as a threat, but rather as a call out for change and shift of archaic structures.