INTERFACE, the International Festival of Alternative and Contemporary Expressions, by Sapphire Creations Dance Company, brought eminent dancers like Padmashri Geeta Chandran and Natya Vrikshya Dance Collective, Santosh Nair and Sadhya Unit of Performing Arts, and Ask Dance Company from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia as part of its ninth edition. The International dance biennial held in Delhi and Kolkata turned into a melting pot of artistes and artistic disciplines from across the world as envisioned by festival director Sudarshan Chakravorty.
The festival kicked off in Delhi on November 4 at India Habitat Centre with an award ceremony where Subijoya Awards in loving memory of parents of the festival director Sudarshan Chakravorty, namely Subinoy and Bijoya Chakraborty, were given to acclaimed dancers Sharon Lowen, Shovana Narayan, puppeteer Dadi Padamjee and publisher Sanjay Arya. Workshop on contemporary movement and discussion on Importance of Impulses of Tradition in contemporary dance practices in India were also held.
The Kolkata edition, a two-day event that kickstarted at EZCC in Salt Lake on November 8, enamoured the audience with two immersive dance performances. Day 2 also saw screening of films, Les Ballets Blitz, Chien Bleu, and Indes Gallantes, at Alliance Franciase du Bengale.
Talking of the significance of the festival Sudarshan Chakravorty said, “The festival was significant for Kolkata as performing anything outside the genre of the established form of modern dance bereft of the aegis of Tagore dance or Uday Shankar style was considered sinful. So, INTERFACE set a new parameter for many who started using this as a trigger to transgress beyond given ideas. The festival had its share of resistance from various spheres but was privileged to have some of the icons of contemporary dance in India performing in multiple cities in this forum, thereby creating a network and a community with global dancers. In the post-pandemic era, with the theme of Reconnection, we connect with artistes, patrons, supporters, allies and media who have been part of the journey for both Sapphire and INTERFACE.”
The Indian premiere of (UN)Paralleled Ragas by ASK Dance Company, Kuala Lumpur, was a conversation between two bodies and minds, journeying across the borders of Bharatanatyam. The performance choreographed and performed by Imran Syafiq Mohd Affandi and Kimberly Yap Choy Hoong explored the ideas of ethnicity, belief systems, relationships and personal choices through movement, music and text. Their fluid body movements and impeccable balance had a hypnotic effect on the audience.
The second performance of the day, Rasasutra: Eternal and Endless, with concept and direction by Sudarshan Chakravorty, went beyond the binaries of the masculine and the feminine, the form and the formless, the sacred and the profane, of movements and stillness, of bodies and that which is not contained. The live electronic music by Hybrid Protokol added a distinct dimension to the ebb and flow of the troupe on the stage.
Bringing the curtain down on Interface 2022 was Unbounded by Santosh Nair and Sadhya Performing Unit, New Delhi. Its Kolkata premiere mesmerised the audience with its swift moves as the conversation between consciousness and energy was drawn from Mayurbhanj Chau.
Pictures: B. Halder and Sapphire Creations Dance Company