Jiji Salam learns to embrace dancing after deciding to try something new.
Nothing else has given me more pleasure than doing a dance routine, whether it be Bollywood or Zumba, it just makes me feel I am someone else and breaks me away from my real life. To me, dancing is just about expressing the storm inside me with confidence.
But learning the traditional South Indian art, Bharatnatyam, late in my life, while in my 40s, is indeed a dream come true. When the journey began at NrityalayaDarpana studio last year, little did I know that I was going to have one of the happiest moments in my life.
The first day of class was painful when we, as a bunch of like-minded adults, were venturing into new waters and it was not easy. Each day was a baby step to the next big one. All I wanted was to be able to do one step more than the previous day. And I am so grateful to Sudha for patiently pushing me and motivating me to do exactly that.
The dance form requires you to be in a posture called “aramandi,” – the knees are bent and turned outward, and the feet are flat on the floor. It is not an easy task to dance in that pose when your body and knees are not cooperating with you. I was constantly teaching my body to adapt to this and I was not ready to give up. To watch my peers in advanced level dance fueled my motivation.
Finally this summer, I was able to perform this beautiful art form on stage and when it happened, it was extra sweet when I got to perform with my daughter.