WHEN YOU... ARE THE DANCE

Kathak, one of eight Indian classical dance forms, originated it is said, in the 3rd or 4th century BC with mythologies like the Mahabharata having mentioned Kathak in their narratives. “Kathak” is derived from the Sanskrit word Katha [Story]. Hence this dance form which narrates a story through the expressions and body movements came to be called Kathak. It was during the Mughal era, in the 16th century A.D. that Kathak received Royal patronage and was performed in the courts. During this period, Kathak received elements from other dance forms like the Persian dance form wherein the art of straight leg movements was introduced along with the spinning movement. Similarities have also been noted between Kathak and the Spanish dance of Flamenco especially in the way feet movements are done. However, Lucknow and Banaras in India, became the two regions specialising in the Kathak dance form. Farah Yasmeen Sheikh shares with us her own travels with Kathak and how she identifies with its rich tradition.

- Farah Yasmeen Sheikh

Born in the “Salad Bowl of the World”, Salinas, California, I lived in the dichotomy common to children of immigrant parents —— being an “ABCD” [American Born Confused Desi]. My parents were born in pre- Partition Bombay, moved to Karachi, Pakistan in 1948, met in college, married and came to the U.S. in 1971, making California their home for almost 48 years.

While my journey with dance began at five, through ballet and jazz, and then until eighteen, I was a baton twirler —— not the typical activity for a daughter of Pakistani Muslim immigrants. During college in San Francisco I took a Kathak dance class, and soon I was consumed by it; privileged as I was, learning from the maestro, Pandit Chitresh Das.