Rhythms of creation and change: an analysis of a solo Bharatanatyam residency under dance India Asia-Pacific

In Singapore, Bharatanatyam is often preserved, practiced, and performed as an ethnic indicator of the minority Indian community. As a traditional art, it “provides a focal point for Singaporeans to explore their roots and achieve a deeper connection with their communities” (NAC 2020). As Bharucha rightfully claims, “Singapore needs Asia in a way that India does not” (2004). Dance India Asia-Pacific (DIAP) is a case in point. Perhaps as a means to strengthen cultural identity and artistic authority through lineage, Apsaras Arts’ DIAP initiative(currently in its 10th year) has seen world-renowned experts from India’s dance fraternity offering masterclasses, workshops, and talks to dancers in Singapore.
Having been selected for the DIAP solo Residency Programme this year, in this paper, I discuss my artistic practice and performance-making processes during the dizzying and disfluent times of COVID-19. From time zones to lag times that get in the way of the rhythmic precisions needed for Bharatanatyam when I share with my mentor and dramaturg based in India, I will interrogate how the pandemic experience has shaped my performance practice specific to the residency platform. Also throwing into relief questions about lineage, how has contemporary mechanisms of artmaking and the sudden global surge in virtual Bharatanatyam learning, refashion the role of the guru?