Teen has passion for classic Indian dance

BHAVTA Harrielall is passionate about north Indian classic dancing.

The 16-year-old pupil at Eden College recently graduated with dancing teacher, Pravika Nandkishore, and now holds a certificate which enables her to dance in public under her own name and to open her own school.

“I’ve been dancing and performing from very young. I did modern Indian dancing for two years and contemporary dancing for two years, and have been dancing Kathak for nine years. The first year of my Kathak dancing career was only about training and learning skills, I didn’t perform,” said Bhavta.

Bhavta said Kathak dancing was very disciplined and she worked eight hours a day for six days a week, training so hard that it had to be second nature to dance, saying she could dance on the spot if needed.

“It becomes a part of you. It has taught me a great deal of self-discipline and devotion. Through my passion, hard work and pure love for dance I was blessed to graduate, and I have been blessed to perform both locally and internationally. Through my dancing I have grown spiritually and have tasted the sweetness of the rich Indian culture and heritage. I have learnt that dance is not merely a movement of the body, but a form of discipline and the awakening of the soul,” she said.

Bhavta has performed in many shows and in October 2011 she represented South Africa in the second International Dance Festival in New Delhi where she was the youngest participant. She said the international experience and her graduation proves she can host her own production.

“I have always performed under a teacher and had to ask permission to perform, however since graduating in January, I am able to go it alone. I have taken on a contract where I will spend five more years with Pravika and train to be a teacher. I aim to open my own dance school after I finish my education,” she said.