Shiamak Davar’s Winter Funk spreads message of peace, unity
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, December 20
Storytelling just got a new format to narrate, weave and enact sequences from daily life and from the world events that are impacting our existence today.
Participants of the Shiamak Davar’s Winter Funk show, organised by the Durga Das Foundation, had much to share as they unveiled nine dance sequences that aptly described their emotions and feelings. Reflecting the themes of diversity, unity, peace, harmony, love and universal brotherhood, they brought with them an energy and optimism that electrified the ambience at the Tagore Theatre, here this evening.
With nearly 175 students in the age group of 4-40 years, the dancers shimmered in their glittery costumes, showed their well-rehearsed moves against the effect of psychedelic lights and high octane music with dance steps that were adapted from modern, contemporary and traditional dance forms.
The fusion style, propagated by Shiamak in Bollywood, has become like a national anthem since it pioneered a completely different form of dance. One that was grand, but which had a smarter and more international appeal to it, combining as it did, multiple forms of dance. So you had hip-hop, jazz, rock n’ roll, contemporary and modern dance forms, all amalgamated into one.
The Winter Funk culminated after a fortnight-long workshop that saw active participation from the dancers as they brainstormed with the instructors, Harshil and Harshada, to give shape to the story-telling that was then enacted through the medium of dance and the choice of numbers that they were choreographed on. The hip hop genre for instance had 7 to 12 year olds playacting parts of a typical rapping style, assimilating in their personas the gait, expressions and movements of the African-American rapper to élan. The rock n’ roll numbers were breezy while contemporary was easily relatable.
Each dance sequence flowed into the next and covered a range of music with numbers like ‘Sweety tera drama’, ‘disco disco’, ‘despacito’ and Amitabh Bachhan’s legendry songs.
What, however, turned out to the highlight of the evening was the electrifying energy that came through with the performance of Victory Class. This was a bunch of children from the NGO, Hamari Kaksha. As part of Shiamak Davar’s and the Durga Das Foundation’s philanthropic efforts, this group took part in the workshop without paying a fee. Dancing to the tune of Vande Matram, it was a treat to watch them as they had the audience cheering them in full force.
Atul Khanna, director of the Durga Das Foundation, said, “Music transcends barriers. There cannot be a better example of this when you see how children from different backgrounds just merge into one cohesive whole, melting their differences and their stations in life to become just creative artistes par excellence.”
