Wednesday, 30 October 2013

Idli and Mohiniyattam

Hey everyone!
Ok so today was a very good day compared to yesterday!

I woke up feeling relatively groggy and sick like yesterday but not quite as bad, had breakfast etc. (Indian milk is weird) and then my teacher came and I said I felt just about up to dancing and so she said she just wanted to see a little of what I had learnt in England and that proper training could begin tomorrow. I probably danced for maybe 20-30 minutes, some of the steps were actually different to what I had learnt and so she made me go over them the way she teaches them. I also danced one piece I know very well to live singing from my teacher and one of her senior students... SO WEIRD. I'm totally not used to live singing!

I felt awful again and had to stop dancing, but after a lie down, some tea and biscuits and plenty of water I felt better again and asked to accompany my teacher to her next class. So we went to the Gariahat campus to a Bharatanatyam class of senior students. It was so inspirational to see them all dance and it was like a live performance in front of me! I recognised a couple of songs from my growing interest in Carnatic music too!

We went back to the teacher's house for lunch and she had had her cook make me idli sambar because I'd said I had never tried it. It's famous in south India and was actually quite nice. Two guests came to the house along with a senior student and another dancer both of whom I had done a workshop with in Reading, I saw the senior student when I first arrived and it was great to see the other dancer again. Lunch time was spent listening avidly to very lively Bengali discussions, and at one point there was a short Malayalam conversation too. I am slowly starting to understand bits of Bengali. Ami ashi means something like I'm going now or goodbye. It's not haan for yes here as it is in Hindi/Urdu but hae. Jol is water and so on.

After lunch I again asked to accompany my teacher to another class this time Mohiniyattam. A classical dance form from Kerala, South India where my teacher is from. Again senior students. I have to say I am totally in love with Mohiniyattam now. It was so beautiful to watch!

I'm now back in my room, there is a kids class going on next door that I'll go and watch in a bit. My teacher has said I can sleep at her house tonight and luckily there are lots of people there. So I have been instructed to bring pj's and my mosquito net etc. etc. I also managed to ask the driver today to get me some more mineral water with my rupees, all in Hindi and voila I have some water! woop woop :P

So generally far more positive today! Here are some pictures from outside  my teacher's house...




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