Attend an evening of contemporary dance performances in Mumbai this weekend

Performers on stage at Viewpoint’s 2022 edition. Pic Courtesy/Brandon Pinto

An evening of four amazing contemporary dance performances is lined up for this weekend. Viewpoint is back with a second edition, which will see performers from across the country. This platform, created by Shruti Maria Datar, a choreographer and arts manager, and founder of The Movement Arts Co.; aims to highlight independent choreographers to make their performances accessible to a larger audience.

The versatile line-up includes an opening act called C tactile by Datar and Melitta D'souza. The three other performances are called Stutter by Kolkata-based Sabita Shaw, Seven Sisters by Mumbai-based Somya Kautia and G.O.A.T (Grotesque of All Time) by Pune-based Maitreyee Joshi; all three are curated by Avantika Bahl, a contemporary dance choreographer and performer.

All the performances in the second edition are roughly eight to 12 minutes long

"My piece is a duet with Melitta D'souza, a dancer, and is about exploring the ways of touch; and how touch operates from a scale of intimacy to violence. It creates these images throughout the work and shows the different kinds of touch and how the body reacts to them," explains Datar.

The remaining three works curated by Bahl have all been treated differently. Each of them is different from the other in terms of movements or the themes they deal with. "They are all quite vastly non-identical. All of these come from a personal space but open up into larger narratives. Like when Maitreyee Joshi read from her note G.O.A.T (Grotesque of All Time), her work came across as quite humorous and intimate to her. So I was curious to see how it would translate onstage," says Bahl.

Explaining Seven Sisters by Somya Kautia, Bahl says that it is an ensemble performance which is a journey of seven people who are strangers at first, and how their relationship evolves and creates a bond of trust and support.

Avantika Bahl and Shruti Maria Datar

"Sabita Shaw's Stutter is a work that really just pushed a singular image and idea, which emerges from a very personal space. It was amazing how she kept expanding and deconstructing the same image through her performance," says Bahl. Shaw's piece explores the idea that expression helps convey one's thoughts but what if one is not given a chance to do so and what if your voice becomes a reason for people's laughter?

All the performances are roughly eight to 12 minutes long and have grown beyond the commercial dance world. There's a lot of theatrical elements and movement. Viewpoint, this year, is being crowd-funded, with an ongoing campaign on milaap.org. The performances will be followed by a question and answer round with the makers about their work and process. "‘What makes this edition different from other performances in the city, is the interactive session at the end of the show. People find it a bit awkward to ask questions and perceive contemporary dance as elitist. The question and answer session post-show gives them a chance to ask questions or share thoughts about the performances," Datar signs off.