It’s Diwali time, and that means family, friends, laughter, sweets, and of course, music and dancing! To get you in the mood, here are some songs to set the tone. So put on those dancing shoes and dance the blues away!
1. Celebration by Kool & The Gang
Because it should be impossible to think of the word ‘celebration’ and not start humming this track.
This weekend, we want you to put on your dancing shoes and your brightest smile and just dance away! And to make sure you are hop-skip-and-jumping your way through the weekend, we have put together a playlist of the happiest songs we could find. Because every single day can be the best day of your life!
1. Happy – Pharrell Williams
Because what’s a playlist about happy dancing that doesn’t start with this song? We practically dare you to NOT tap your foot along to this ditty. (It’s impossible. Seriously.)
What a great week we’ve got lined up for you this week. We’re so excited that we’re just going to dive right in!
Comedy Munch
Organising their first Poetry/Storytelling Open Mic in Mumbai By The Name ‘Manch – Powered By Comedy Munch’, Talent Partner- Kalakaksh
They will be providing a Stage, a Platform to the upcoming artists to showcase their talent in Poetry, Story Telling and Stand Up. This is totally a non-profitable Initiative.
Date: 13 August 2018
Time: 5 pm – 8 pm
Entry: FREE
Rishiraj Studio
The game, Chanakya’s Chakkravyuh – is designed to change the perceptions of people about Finance and make them Financially Literate. The purpose of the game is to make India Economically Strong, by imparting Financial Education, based on ancient Indian Philosophy.
Date: 14 August 2018
Time: 4 pm – 8 pm
Entry: FREE
Quantum
Path To Profit is our opportunity to interact with you and understand your investment needs. We travel across various cities in India and guide our investors, both existing and potential, through the investment process.
Date: 17 August 2018
Time: 10 am – 2 pm
Entry: FREE
ASM Academy
Students are going to sing old Kishore kumar songs with minimal music , its going to be a smooth jamming session.
Date: 17 August 2018
Time: 6 pm – 9 pm
Entry: FREE
Dori – A Thread Art
Come and learn Crochet, the ethnic thread and needlework technique that will help you design fancy jewelry pieces for yourself and some amazing customised gifts for your friends and family.
Date: 18 August 2018
Time: 11:30 am – 2:30 pm
Entry: Rs. 300/-
Raman
Fun with Science Parent-child workshop. Learn the Science concepts in a fun way!! Limited seats available. To register please call 9930360735. Children in the age group of 3 to 11 with their parents can enroll for this.
Date: 18 August 2018
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Entry: FREE
Averti
Offline Workshop for the members of HEROES – an online community of men focusing on Health, Career, Relationships and Self Growth.
Date: 19 August 2018
Time: 10 am – 12 pm
Entry: FREE
Dr. Preeti Chawla/ Aaroham
Practical workshop on Basic Relaxation methods; Mindfulness for focus and inner peace; Dynamic breathing for optimum health & internal cleansing.
Date: 19 August 2018
Time: 12:30 pm – 4:30 pm
Entry: Rs. 800/-
Punam Chawla
Bring in your canvas & colors; paint with us; take it home to adorn the walls of our den. Come & play with colors!!
Date: 19 August 2018
Time: 4:30 pm – 8:30 pm
Entry: Rs. 1000/-
Looking forward to seeing you! Have a fabulous week!
*Small reminder – Please note that the Cafe will be shut on 15th August on account of Independence Day.
They say you should dance like no one’s watching, but that can be an intimidating proposition if you know you’ve got two left feet, right? And so, it helps to be in a small group, nestled in an intimate setting where the lights have been dimmed to a mild yellow glow. This was quite the setting participants found themselves in this Sunday, at Vidya Damani’s ‘Creative Movement’ Therapy workshop held at QTube Café.
To kick things off, teacher and passionate dancer Vidya led the participants through a warm up routine designed to get muscles and minds in the mood. A few mild exercises, focused on rotations and stretches, got participants warmed up and ready for the next activity which was to introduce themselves to the group, but in a creative way. Let’s just say only sharing your name wasn’t enough and had to be coupled with an act that would definitely prod you out of your comfort zone!
As the participants were recovering from the giggling fit induced by the introductions, Vidya took out a host of props and scattered them on the floor. Among these were pompoms, a lacy piece of cloth, a pillow, shawls, scarves and a Chinese fan. Each participant had to select a prop they were drawn to and use it in their dance. While some were hesitant at first, eventually, almost everyone in the room were moving with their props in creative ways. Steps ranged from sensuous to goofy to childlike and everyone seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves.
After this came the most interesting activity of the session. Separated into pairs, participants had to indulge in the ‘Mirror Me’ activity. Talking about this activity later, many participants said that it helped them experience a side of themselves they didn’t know existed. “A lot of my exercises focus on creating self-awareness, because in our busy lives we hardly get time to get in touch with our inner selves” Vidya Damani tells us later. Having worked as a brand consultant for 12 years, Vidya is all too familiar with the chaos of corporate life. She quit her job two years back to learn creative movement therapy and has since dedicated her time to conducting sessions for those in need of a breather. She mostly conducts sessions for corporates, where her workshops focus on helping employees destress and explore anew their creative side.
The next activity too prompted the participants to get colourful and creative. Handing out paper and crayons, Vidya asked the participants to recreate on paper something they wished to share. It could be an emotion or a thought or anything that was holding their imaginations captive. This exercise tied in with an activity that followed later, which saw the participants express what they’d drawn through a dance move. What emerged through these exercises were not just colourful pictures or quirky moves, but a plethora of emotions that burst from the participants and danced through the room.
Soon, it was time to bring the hour and a half long workshop to a close. The last activity aimed to bring the participants to a state of calmness and to achieve this, the lights were dimmed and participants were asked to close their eyes and visualize peaceful scenarios. A good 10 minutes were dedicated to this activity and on completing it, many smiles and positive experiences were shared. All in all, this workshop was not just enjoyable, but empowering, with each participant admitting to having shed one inhibition or another. The best part though is that you don’t have to be a dancer to be able to fully enjoy or participate in this workshop, an open mind and comfy clothes is all you need to bring to the room, and you’re ready to reap the benefits of creative movement!
If you’d like to know more about Vidya Damani’s workshops, contact her at 9820386865.
Two sessions will be held this weekend at QTube Cafe. Come participate to experience the benefits of creative movement.
Some songs really bring out the dancer in you. When these tracks beckon, you feel compelled to let go of every ounce of shyness and just go crazy on the dance floor. It helps if the song playing has its own dance routine. When that happens, you feel in control since you don’t have to rack your brains to come up with steps that make you look cool, and not like you’re having a minor stroke. That’s probably why Village People’s Y.M.C.A is so popular and so is the Nae Nae song by Silento. Here are 5 other such popular tracks that we’ve loved all these years. Read on to discover some cool trivia behind these songs. Also, we’ve added some really cool dance videos to help you learn some new moves. Enjoy!
Macarena
This Spanish dance hit became a staple at every celebration. The moves are so simple, it’s almost like performing a couple of aerobic dance steps. Also, it looks best when performed in a group, making it the perfect move for bashful dancers. One cannot imagine doing the Macarena any other way but with these trademark steps!
Forgotten how to do the Macarena? Here’s a short video to remind you.
The Twist – Chubby Checkers
This dance move is a favourite with dancers and non-dancers alike, because it’s one of the easiest moves to pull off. All you need to do is twist, swivel your hips in time with the music. If thinking of it as a dance move makes you want to distance yourself from it, you can think of it as a move to put out a rather stubborn cigarette, or something you do when you’re trying to dry your back using a towel. The Twist was first performed by Hank Ballard, an RnB singer who came up with the song ‘The Twist,’ after seeing people enjoy this 60s dance move. However, it took a Chubby Checker version to really propel this song and dance move to fame.
Here are some of the best twists in the history of twisting. Watch and learn.
Walk Like an Egyptian – The Bangles
The Bangles made it cool to stick a camera in the face of dancing pedestrians’ way before Pharrell Williams came along with that ‘Happy’ idea. In the video, we see people on the streets of New York striking an old pose – one that was a hit with the Pharaohs of Egypt. This pose, which can be found quite easily on Egyptians relics, requires the hands to be positioned quite like the arms of the ‘Swastika.’ If you aren’t familiar with Hindu iconography, imagine a person miming the nursery rhyme ‘I am a teapot.’ Thinking you are a teapot will surely help you walk like an Egyptian.
Here’s a cool video with an animated character performing some kickass moves to this song. The original song video is another good place to pick up the trademark ‘walk like an Egytian’ step.
Vogue – Madonna
As Madonna croons in her Pop Queen voice “Common Vogue! Let your body move to the music,” a group of well-groomed, slick young men make sharp hand gestures in time to the music. The lyrics are interspersed with close ups of these gentlemen striking runway model-like poses, facial expressions included. What these fine lads are doing is ‘voguing,’ a dance style that emerged in the streets of Harlem in the 1980s. Inspired by the graceful gait of runway beauties, young gay black men created a dance style that mimicked the runway flamboyance of models. Called ‘Voguing’ after the fashion magazine ‘Vogue,’ this dance style features exaggerated hand movements, smooth spins, and poses based on those struck by catwalking models. Madonna’s pop hit brought this forgotten dance style back into popular consciousness in the 90s.
Gangnam Style
Psy’s Gangnam Style broke the internet when it released in June 2012. Everyone from little kids to grandmas enjoyed mimicking the horse-riding-like dance move popularized by Psy. Quite frankly, it’s impossible to try any other dance move with this song. It’s almost like Michael Jackson’s iconic Thriller move, where one couldn’t imagine replacing zombie-like walk with anything else.
This hilarious video of wizard Gandalf doing the Gandalf style, sorry, Gangnam style is pure gold.
Not going by Steve Martin’s imitation of this dance in the movie Pink Panther 2, one will realize that the Flamenco is an immensely captivating dance. Powerful moves communicate an almost lethal strength, emotionally charged expressions speak of raging passions and a rousing musical score sets the pace and tempo for this fiery dance. That is why, it is almost impossible to sit through a Flamenco performance without feeling a pulse of energy rush through your system, one that ignites in you a desire to get up and join in the dancing. Sadly, we don’t know much about this dance. Except for the rare glimpse of ruffling-skirt-sporting, red-lipped dancers we are treated to in a few music videos, we aren’t exposed to the other beautiful aspects of this dance. Here’s going beyond those second-long, superficial representations and exploring the lesser known aspects of this culturally rich dance.
Although the dance style is an integral part of Spanish culture, it has been influenced by several other cultures, namely; Andalusian, Islamic, Arabic, Sephardic and Gypsy. In its music and choreography, one finds traces of all these diverse cultures.
Today, several clubs host professional Flamenco performances. Although it isn’t completely unusual to spot street performances, they aren’t the norm of the day. In earlier times however, this dance was performed by peasants, who would come together to enjoy gatherings on the street. Simple rhythms, like the music of the Flamenco guitar and the applause of the audience egged the dancers on.
The most striking aspect of this dance is its intensity. The tradition of channeling strong emotions goes back to the time when it was performed by peasants, who used the dance as a medium to express problems and hardships faced by them. That is also why earlier Flamenco performances were held in clandestine gatherings, where only people from a specific community could attend.
A male Flamenco dancer is known as a ‘bailaor’ and a female dancer is called a ‘bailaora.’ The men wear elegant, close-fitting tuxedos and Cordoban hats while the women wear long, frilled dresses called ‘Bata de Cola’ and a shawl. High heels, a fan, red lipstick and a red rose behind their ear completes their getup.
In most dance forms, especially ones that demand a high level of physical fitness, young dancers are preferred to senior ones. However, when it comes to Flamenco dancing, senior dancers are said to be better performers because time has helped them master the art of channeling emotion through facial expressions and dance moves. The older the dancer, the more nuanced the expressions.
If you wish to see authentic Flamenco performances, head to Seville, Granada, Cadiz or Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, for these Spanish regions are famous for their beautiful performers and performances!
Can’t afford to go to Spain? No worries. Here’s a beautiful Flamenco dancing video to give you a taste of this passionate dance! The Bailaora is Sara Baras, a Flamenco dancer known the world over for her grace, style and talent.
This fun event, with an even funnier name, was a very special one for us. For the first time, the NSPA planned an organized an event of this sort, and we must say, it did feel good! It was also special because of the many glitches and disappointments we had to brave and overcome along the way. From last-minute venue shifts to having to re-envision the entire event, a lot of drama unfolded before this dream could turn into something tangible. But as they say, if plan A doesn’t work, the alphabet has 25 more letters to choose from! Thankfully, we didn’t have to go too far into the alphabet for our plan B, which materialized into ‘Misal Pav – Music. Dance. Theater,’ worked perfectly fine and even gave us the whiff of success we were hungry for!
The days leading up to the event were just as exciting as the event itself. Internship interviews, recces, artist rehearsals, planning and organization activities kept us on our toes and as D-day neared, excitement and anticipation reached fever pitch. Before we knew it, the big day arrived and it was time for our artists to take the stage. The event kicked off with a bang with some of the earliest NSPA artists performing the NSPA song. From then on, it was two days of non-stop entertainment and awe-inspiring performances. The audience were treated to songs from different genres life Sufi, folk, western and pop. There were also some exciting Uttarbhartiya and Bengali-Marathi fusion performances. An act that stole the show was the smashing a cappella piece performed by our western artists. We also loved the innovative and extremely melodious ambient fusion piece that featured a range of percussion rhythms interspersed with mellow vocals and guitaring. Two powerful street plays added the intellectual punch needed to get the audience thinking. The play by ‘Jazba’ urged people to stop focusing on their differences and start focusing on qualities that unite us. ‘Naatakwaale’ put up a play on unemployment and advised the audience to make good use of their time and talents. There also was an energetic dance performance mid-way through the evening to infuse some fun into the event. The next day too seen some talented performances but the most memorable moments came towards the end when artists and team members left their seats to shake a leg to some feet-tapping songs performed by our NSPA artists! Yeah, that’s how we like to end things – in style!
What touched us the most however, throughout the event, was the dedication and grit that shown through our artists as they performed on stage. Even during intervals when audience numbers dwindled, each artist put their best foot forward and performed as if they were performing to a packed venue. It was as if a strange surge of confidence and happiness gripped them as soon as they set foot on stage and once immersed in their performance, it didn’t matter whether there were three people sitting in front of them or a hundred, their passion never waned, nor did their zeal. Eyes closed, lost in their performance, they gave us a glimpse of what it means to be an artist. As a wise man once said, “art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time,” and watching these budding stars on stage was an inspiring experience.
We are extremely grateful to all who helped make this event a possibility. Much thanks and gratitude must be extended to Quantum Asset Management Company and Sai Baba Park Welfare Association for without their support, this event would be a distant dream. Also, we wish to thank all the interns for their help and their positive attitude. Last but not the least, a big shout out to all our artists for their fabulous performances. You guys are awesome and we are extremely proud to have y’all on board! Keep up the sunny attitude!
