Dancers play theatre in novel production

When the theatre company Prayas began planning their new production Khoj: The Search, they were keen to add a dance sequence to an already compelling storyline.

This sequence runs parallel to the story.

It is based on an age-old Indian morality tale, which director Amit Ohdedar determined would complement the themes in the main storyline.

Head choreographer Tina Chakraborthy and assistant director Sananda Chatterjee took into account the various cultural influences prevalent in the Auckland society while creating the dance sequences.

They were also mindful of the two different identities that the play was portraying- Indian and New Zealand and were keen that the dances should reflect this duality.

This was done by borrowing from the cultural traditions of both India and New Zealand; this meant finding a way of blending the Haka with Bharata Natyam, Tiki Taane with contemporary as well as classical Indian music.

Since the play addresses and ultimately challenges the duality of being a migrant in an adopted country, the dance sequence also represents this by having two groups of dancers who reflect the conflict experienced by the main character Jamshed Balsara.

The different ways in which a person’s old life and new life can make his or her  claim upon them is an underlying theme explored by the dances.

The dances also seek to highlight the delicate balance in honouring the identity unto which we are born and the identity that we should create for ourselves.

Since this is no mean task, Tina and her group of enthusiastic dancers have put in hours of tireless practice, meeting not only on the weekends but also during the week to create a performance that not only complements the main story, but also narrating a story of its own. 

Tina pays tribute to her dancers, saying that it has been a pleasure working with a group of talented and dedicated artistes.

She eagerly looks forward to performing to an audience who she believes would appreciate the journey that is expressed and the harmony achieved by the dance story.

Poorna Prakash is a member of the Prayas Group.

Editor’s Note: As published in these columns recently, Khoj is about Jamshed, a young Parsi boy who migrates to New Zealand in the mid 1990s, leaving behind in his native India a grumpy father and a pining mother who live in the hope that their son would make it big in the new land.

Life in Auckland turns out to be different and Jamshed is haunted by the promise that he made to his mother. The storyline of Khoj was inspired by the best-selling author Rohinton Mistry’s collection of short stories, Tales from Firozsha Baag.

Khoj is tribute to Mistry as well as an insight into the Parsi culture.