A bright spark in the dance firmament

Moutushi Khandaker

Today, she trains under Shibli Mohammad and has delved deep into the subject of dance. "What began as a form of treatment flowered into an abiding interest and love for classical dance. My knowledge of Kathak and the basics of other classical dances is my greatest achievement," asserts Moutushi.

Who has inspired her along the way? Moutushi gives pride of place to her guru Shibli, but there are others such as Malavika Mitra and Pandit Birju Maharaj. A great memory is a compliment from the latter when he came to Dhaka, in 1998. Though at the time she was not a full-fledged Kathak dancer, her footwork impressed him so greatly that he commented to Shibli that the sound of her feet was delightful and--with proper practice--she had the makings of a good dancer. Likewise, she receives encouragement from Shibli, who firmly believes in her high dance calibre and potential to be a remembered name in the dance firmament.

However, Moushumi cannot divorce herself from some of the common concerns of dancers in Bangladesh. As she asserts, this performing art gets low coverage in the electronic media. Likewise, while the glamour of TV serials and the ramps lures away talent, Hindi films continue to influence dance in Bangladesh. Education, or rather the lack of it, is another hindrance. "When I perform a Kathak dance on stage, I have to give a demonstration about each element of my dance; I should explain the meaning of tarana, thumri and so on. If I don't know, how can I get other people to understand?" questions Moutushi.

While the technical side of dance is important to Moutushi, so is the necessity to communicate effectively with the audience. "Dance, in my view is the most primitive form of speech. When people didn't know how to speak or have the words to make a sentence, they moved their hands, eyes and changed their facial expressions. We can see dance everywhere today--in the movement of a leaf, the movement of a baby's hand and the expression in a baby's eyes," she says evocatively.

Moutushi has many plans in the offing. In the first week of February, she will perform in a charity show for the blind. In the programme, being organised by the NGO Drishti, she will do Guru Vandana and possibly close the Kathak evening with a jugalbandi along with her teacher Shibli. Midway, she plans to demonstrate some technical aspects of Kathak, such as thumri and tarana.

In the long term she aspires to teach in a university. A graduate from North South University in English linguistics and English TESOL (for teachers of English as a second language), she wants to do her Master's in English TESOL from the UK. In the long term, she also has the ambition to do her Ph.D. in dance--maybe in the Delhi Kathak Kendra or Bharatiya Kala Kendra. Explaining her interest in research, she says, "I want to prove that classical dance is richer than commercial dance. Every dancer must have a grounding in classical dance because it is the basis of our dance."

Given her dedication and commitment to her art she might just prove a bright spark in the dance firmament.