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It was an evening when the cinema drumbeats
Iremained in the background, instead the ethnic garb
the participants donned hogged the limelight. What
should have been a convergence of cross-cultural traditions |
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took a swirl whether for the better or worse. What
unfolded was a two-fold battle between the contestants
from the tiny island that dot the Indian Ocean on the one
hand and a subtle battle between the continents on the
other. Echoes of their vibrant beats held sway throughout
the evening concert to mark the conclusion of the
international students’ cultural and literary extravaganza,
Gardenia Internationale-Confluence 2009 at Garden City
College. The winner of course was the packed audience
who came in their large numbers to witness the duels.
There were the enlightening solo items by Madhushan,
Kasum Malisha and Ankhbaya as well as songs from Sri
Lanka, described as the tear drop of India with Adam’s |
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Bridge, a small chain of islands linking the nations
together.
Sri Lanka may be in the news for all the wrong reasons
–a civil strife indelibly ingrained in our minds but what was
on display gave the audience an insight into another facet
of the island –vibrant culture that reflected a rare zest for
life. Buoyed by their dazzling costumes, the dance troupes
led by Chintha, Kapilan, Akhmeem, Abhinav, Yanchan and
Ameen wove magical spells on the audience. The dances
based on the performer’s mores was a child like plea to the
audience to visit to the land of soothing breezes where the
mind wonders in a world of smiling sweet melodies free of
fears, tears or worries.
One could gather the songs had a meaning, a longing
for what they may have left behind. It turned out that they
were not alone. The dancers found an ebullient response
from the boisterous batch of Lankans in the crowd who
could not contain their enraptured spirits and moved back
in time to their ‘distant’ homeland.
But if the beats and gyrating movements of their
women folk flooded them with nostalgic memories, the
masculinity the timbre and undulating drumbeats in their
performances was absorbing. The dances were arguably the
pick of the lot although some felt they were a trifle too
many. Other dances featured included the Yemen students’
performance and the winners from Sri Lanka in the ethnic
and contemporary dance categories. The dance from Sri
Lanka bore a close resemblance to some of the famed art
forms of Kerala. Donning traditional white and red Lankan
attire and basking in their newfound glory, the unique |
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Echoes of vibrant beats held sway
throughout the evening concert to
mark the conclusion of Gardenia
Internationale-Confluence 2009 at
Garden City College. |
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fusion of instruments accompanying the dance was quite
refreshing. So too were the melodies.
Another performance worth mentioning was the famed
lingala dance from central Africa presented by the Barry and a
group of students from Uganda. The athleticism we so often
associate with those of Afro descent was evident as the artists
grooved to the pulsating beats of the music. Earlier, the dance
troupe marshaled by Alida had brought the audience on the
edges of their seats. Making their maiden appearance at the
show, the gyrating female artists left the audience in awe with
the remarkable ease they went through their well
choreographed dance. And when their show ended, there was
no doubt in the mind of the audience there is more to come
from them in future. It had every thrill a good dance provides
marking a sharp shift from what had gone before.
Later, the spotlight firmly shifted to the five member
Mongolian dance troupe, Just Shake, and the awesome |
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movement of the Rwandese dance
troupe.
If the dance to beats of Bollywood
number, Desi girl in the former was
breathtaking, the subtle movements in
dance were equally fascinating.
Interestingly, in all these dances,
one could decipher an amalgam of
cultures – the gymnastics of the ballet,
the vigour and throb of African beats
and the mystique of the island dancers
and their costumes akin to the Indian
bridal wear – was clear testimony of the
mixed racial inf luences of the
participating nations.
Lending a classical touch were
some of the artists from Sri Lanka.
That was long before the GCC Roll ‘4’
Soul Dance Troupe called the shots
with its medley. Drawing the usual
applause from the audience the artist
were good advertisement for Indian
art forms.
So when the fashion team lead by
Elka Kar ina M Acacio f rom
Mozambique put her artists for the
fashion show, with the theme, We are
the World, one could not help but ink
the performance as a perfect climax to
a day of absorbing cultural mix. Over
to Gardenia Internationale -
Confluence 2010!
Dr. John Patrick Ojwando
Lecturer, Dept. of Media Studies |
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