My Indian Song and Dance Festival

Last Saturday it was my turn to host our bi-monthly song festival.
This is an institution among my friends and friends of friends
The idea is to spend a lazy Saturday afternoon/evening together playing musical excerpts from great movies. We're all somehow involved in the creative arts world.
My turn comes around about every 18 months or so and I always feature songs from my great collection of Bollywood movie DVD's. Some of my Indian friends from Durban came up and so we were a motley but happy bunch.

It was a group that had a strong movie making (Indian and Hollywood), script writing and radio jock elements. We thus had the add-on plus of Indian music expertise available... some who could demonstrate a few dance movements and those that could tell us about filming dance scenes in the field.
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The radio announcer was a lovely modern Muslim girl who was able to explain some of the terms and concepts of love referred to in the stunning war movie "Dil Se".

I was the host and was thus the one that chose the songs that we would listen to and discuss. As we listened, we drank beer, wine, fruit juices, tea and coffee. We had lots of food including samoosas, chips, dried sausages and lots of our delicious South African dried fruit. The stage was thus set for total immersion in the music and the dancing. A journey to another world. Spectacles that can only be seen in Indian movies.

This was my selection. They are some of my all time favourites and were received with ecstatic delight by all. I'll try and tell you why.

1. Song and Dance from the movie "China Gate"
This story takes place in the stark locale of Hampi, Karnataka and it's about old soldiers being called back into action after assuming that their war days were finally over. Urmila Matondkar puts in a stunning guest appearance.
In her dance "Chamma Chamma" she dances to some incredible music. Her dance is exciting to behold and shows how well she was trained in a difficult but exciting style of dancing.
But it's her expressions that hold your attention. Her smile is irresistibly cheeky and her pantomiming is a delight.

2.Song and Dance from the movie "Nayak"
This story is mind boggling for its most incredible background effects but ones that are not outrageously impossible. They are all based on Indian legends and fables.
In the number "Tu Achch Lagta Hai" Anil Kapoor and Rani Mukerjee dance in front of a gigantic heap of pumpkins that grows larger and larger until it has, like a haveli (or large mansion) balconies in among the pumpkins.
The couple dance with a freedom that is a delight to see and the music is a joy.
Later, the two do a dance while somehow keeping a broomstick lodged between them without the use of their hands.

PS. Anil Kapoor is now the India-South Africa Cultural Ambassador.

3. Two Song and Dances from the movie "Dil Se"
This story has a sad political theme based on tension between the Indian and Pakistani communities. The story is about atrocities and revenge.
The main roles are played by the incredible Shah Ruhk Khan and Manisha Koirala who is so suited to her role that she must have been born to play it.

In the movie Dil Se represents the seven shades of love described in ancient Arabic literature as hub, uns, ishq, aqidat, ibaddat, junoon and maut.
Of these the shade "ishq" is the one most referred to in poetry..."the flame of her body is felt...his breath starts igniting...love".

The first song and dance is an all-time classic. Imagine a train, with the roof crowded to the brim with passengers, travelling between high mountains and deep valleys over the tallest bridges that you'll ever see and sometimes going through tunnels with the whistle blowing eerily.

During the number "Chaiya Chaiya" SRK and a superb dancer give a display of dancing that will never be equalled anywhere in the world. The music too grabs your soul and says "live this moment as if it's your last".

Andrew Lloyd Webber used this music in his ill-fated "Bombay Dreams" and it was all that saved his musical from being his most gigantic flop.

I saw SRK live on stage in Durban with Amitabh Bachchan acting totally impromptu on the state for 3 ½ hours. They had the 60 000 audience totally enthralled. In my humble opinion, SRK is the greatest living actor alive anywhere in the world.

The second song and dance number is down between bombings, shootings, rushing troops and scenes of disaster. It's the title song "Dil Se" and the music is hauntingly beautiful. As they dance one realises how an impossible love begins to flourish and how she, try as she might, cannot withstand SRK's irresistible appeal.

4. Two Song and Dances from the movie "Sur The Musical"
For me this is the musical of all musicals. It has everything especially the most credible circumstances.
It's about a beautiful music school high up i in the mountains near Goa. Lucky is the world famous teacher under whom everyone wants to study. Gauri is the poor waitress who can sing but thinks of music sheets as "ants crawling on paper".

Her sister finds the money and Gauri is enrolled at the school where she is, at first, a total failure. Then one morning she wakes up with the realisation that she has just composed a song. And what a song it is.
She dances through the school and out into the meadows singing what must be the happiest song ever written. It's called "Dil Mein Jaagi Dhadkar Aise".

Gauri faces the deepest dejection as her Master becomes insanely jealous of her talents. Eventually he finds her in a monastery and persuades her to appear on the stage. The film ends with a magnificent solo performance of virtuoso singing, wild gypsy music and heart stopping dancing.
This second number is called "Kabhie Sham Dhale" and the dubbed voice is that of Mahalaxmi, one of India's great songstresses.

On must understand that Indian song and dance numbers last for at least 10 to 15 minutes. So with all the watching, discussion, eating and drinking, the event lasted until late that evening...but there wasn't anyone in the sitting room who really wanted it all to end.