Aadyaa has been learning kathak for a year now. It’s been a fun ride, but not easy by a long shot, for her and her friends. Learning a classical art form takes discipline and rigour, both don’t come easy for little children. In the initial months, novelty carried her through. But as her guru (well-known kathak exponent Sushmita Ghosh who is also the current Director of Kathak Kendra in New Delhi) pushed them more, I saw Aadyaa’s enthusiasm wane a few times. A few weekends she came back saying: Guruji daant-thi hain- she scolds us! As a mother and a kathak dancer myself, I had to make the right sympathetic noises while also conveying that the discipline is part of the game.

Slowly and painstakingly, the rights and lefts fell in place, her habitual attention seeking faded away and was replaced by a deep sense of enjoyment in her dance, an appreciation of nuances and the development of focus. She started at the age of five, now she is six. And I amazed by the progress all of her friends in the kathak class have made.

The icing on the cake, though, was their stage performance last week. Sushmita guruji began to prepare them for the show way back in December, teaching them the basic piece first and embellishing it as time went on. The choreography was reasonably complex for beginners, but the little ones handled it beautifully. They had had plenty of practice and repetition, so they were all comfortable on stage and not nervous at all.

They shone resplendent in their beautifully designed off white and gold angrakha kurtas with coloured churidaars. They has identical jewelry made and similar make-up as well. All of the dressing up created a flurry of excitement among the girls. For Aadyaa and many others, it was the first time they were trying make up! She sat with a pout from the time the lipstick went on till they got off stage, some for hours!

But far more than how they looked and how well they danced, what impressed me was the confidence and sense of enjoyment that was evident in these little dancers. They are fortunate indeed to be blessed with a guru who loves them and is dedicated to her art. Little experiences like dancing to live music and sitting patiently through the pieces that other dancers performed added to their training. The entire show had an intimate and relaxed feel to it, which I think was a deliberate attempt to draw the audience (parents and well wishers of the students mostly) into the enticing world of Indian classical arts. All in all, a memorable experience for all of us and moment to take genuine pride in our children!

Check out Aadyaa’s dance video below. Credits: Rachna Khanna

And enjoy the pics below! Credits: Nupur Chaturvedi