Exposure for Indian dancers internationally limiting, says Terence

Ace choreographer Terence Lewis says the exposure for Indian dancers at an international platform is very "limiting" due to lack of awareness of opportunities.

"The exposure for Indian dancers at an international platform is very limiting, but I must say that it is soon changing. One is, the fact that we also have to be aware of all the possibilities, the opportunities that lie," Terence, who will be attending forthcoming ImPulsTanz - Vienna International Dance Festival, told IANS.

He added: "Most of the artists in our country, including myself and the others, are not aware of the opportunities and the platforms that exist, but thanks to the age of technology and YouTube and internet, I think those gaps are going to be soon crossed over the bridges."

Terence runs Terence Lewis Contemporary Dance Company in Mumbai and specialises in Indian folk, contemporary and neo-classical dance forms. He has even choreographed international stage shows, Bollywood shows, Broadway western musicals and music videos.

He hopes that "Indian artists are well represented internationally".

"There is a very great curiosity and value in being Indian and culturally so diverse and therefore, the European and the international communities are eager and want to know what happens in India with contemporary dance, how is the Indian artist taking all the political, social, all of that aspects in his performance and how does he present it. They're very keen to see that through artists.

"The world is very open and it is really looking forward to India and I'm hoping that we can represent them well and create more interest for them."

This year, Terence is going along with nine dancers from his dance company. They will perform a dance piece on the final day of the festival on August 12.

Titled as The Kamshet Project, it is directed by Terence and is a hard hitting piece of dance theater that explores the darker side of human nature.

"It's about nine dancers who are taking a personal journey into their life and talking about their present, past and how they perceive themselves and how they're dealing with all the loss, the tragedy, the love, the pain," he said.

--IANS

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