Creating work without a frame of reference is a common phenomenon among independent artists in India. They fully devote their time and effort in order to create a piece of work but are often lacking in direction. Anusha Lall realised the urgent need for an artist-friendly atmosphere and initiated the Gati Dance Forum, a charity run by dancers for dancers. Gati leads workshops in technique and choreography and presents the work from dancers, young and established. In November 2010, Gati hosted IGNITE!, a festival of contemporary dance that showcased work from artists across the world alongside the best of contemporary artists from India.
A salient feature of the forum is the annual Gati Summer Dance Residency (GSDR), where chosen choreographers are provided with financial support, individual mentoring, rehearsal space and production assistance. As one might imagine, to conceive a residency for emerging choreographers of the Indian subcontinent is a colossal task. Ambiguous definitions of ‘traditional’ and ‘contemporary’ often places artists, and their work, into grey areas of identity. Favouring multiplicity in art, Lall felt that there was a significant need to support ‘new work’ by locating new initiatives without demarcation of forms and restricting notions of ‘the contemporary’.
Now in its third successful year, GSDR prides itself as the only residence available to Indian dancers, aiming to address key areas in India’s professional dance scene such as creation and choreography. The residency introduces the artists to the freedom of creativity by guiding them through improvisation tasks and opening up their imagination.
This year’s residency mentors included renowned theatre artist, Maya Krishna Rao, Christopher Lechner who has worked extensively with improvisation, contact and installation art, and Anusha Lall. The mentors provided an ‘outside eye’ while refraining from prescribing a set methodology, or pedagogy, for the artists’ choreography.
Two performances named ‘ALL WARMED UP’ were held at Shri Ram Centre, Delhi on15 & 16 June 2011 to showcase the work of six resident choreographers of this year – Mehneer Sudan, Niranjani Iyer, Mayuka Gayer, Nongmeikapam Surjit, Rukmini Vijaykumar and Deepak Kurki Shivaswamy. These six choreographers were chosen on merit for their previous experience as well as their potential to develop.
Self-discovery was a common trait between the work of all six choreographers. Sudan points out that India has travelled from the question “So you’re a dancer but what is it that you really do?” to “What is this contemporary dance?” reinforcing the necessity for a choreographic residency in the Indian subcontinent. Sudan states that “There is a lot happening in the West and a lot of us would find any opportunity to shift base! This is why a residency of this kind is extremely well-timed in this part of the world.”
