There is a language through which the rivers communicate with humans — through their currents, moods and turbulence! When artist, dancer and performance studies scholar, Kanta Kochar-Lindgren, a half-Indian from Hong Kong, came down to Kerala just to enjoy its scenic beauty, she found that the humans were now failing to understand the language of the river.
Hence, she with her international dance team, comprising two Malayalis and three artists from US, decided to spread the message of water conservation using theatre and dance as tools.
Thus formed the project, Water in Kerala: Art, Performance, Science, an international arts training, outreach, and mini-festival programme, at SH College Thevara, Kochi. In fact the programme has been going on for the past seven days with the students getting mesmerised by the team’s novel approach on spreading awareness on water.
Agnes Maliekkal, a first year BA economics student, is overwhelmed by the new experience she had with the team for almost a week. “This is so amazing. I have been fond of rivers and rains and I feel instantly connected to the project. We have to conserve water and it was quiet heartening to know that out of the 28 states in India, we consume water with the maximum bacteria. About the performance, I have no words to express. All I can say is the movements in our performance directly connect with the soul and am enjoying it while performing, unlike our traditional dances with strict rules and moves,” she explains.
“Water in Kerala”, directed by Kanta, focuses on sharing water stories through theatre and dance. “My project partners are Sen Jansen T.F from Kochi and Rag Saseendrababu from Kollam, along with US guest artists Morgen Chang, Aaron Gabriel and Beth Graczyk. It is really interesting to work with the students. Seven days are not enough but as a team, through dance, theatre, digital and media technology, we are exploring water stories, daily water practices, natural and engineered water systems and rivers all around the world. This project will build interest in the kids on the innovative approaches of communication skills, creativity, and blending science with the arts,” says Kanta.
The director aims to have an international arts collaboration and she is confident that through the project the team would be able to build a new conversation between humans and environment. “We are advocates of environment and using music, dance, movements and motion we will tell the world that we need water to survive. Listen to them, the rivers too have something to say!” she adds.
The performance has adopted various styles of dancing and movement studies like Bharatanatyam, American modern dance, Indian contemporary dance and Laban Movement Analysis.
The music too comes from different parts of the world. For Dancer Sen Jensen who has performed across the globe for various shows, ‘Water in Kerala’ is something very different.
“Kanta is so passionate about the need for preventing water pollution and all she knew was art through which she wanted to convey the message. While we discussed, we thought why not approach the youngsters because they are the future. We need to give them insight into the need to conserve water. It is our life saviour. We are really happy that SH College took it up and the dance club understood our intention. These seven days of interaction with students were virtually breathtaking and challenging. However, the children are brilliant and we are happy that the project was successful,” he says with a smile.
