Ankita Alemona, on growing through rest and study

I am moving into this new season recognizing the importance of rest – and the need to process and reflect – as an important part of my artistic expression. I have received a lot of knowledge during the time I have been in India over the past two years training intensively in Kalaripayatt and Mayurbhanj Chhau – as well as cross-training in other movement practices to deepen my understanding of this truly dynamic field. This time has clarified a lot in my interdisciplinary work and thought processes as a contemporary dancer, theatre artist, film artist…! Learning under Guru Trilochan Mohanta, I’ve gone deeper into the practice of Chhau, a dance form with martial elements from Odissa in Eastern India that only recently became recognized officially as a classical dance by the Ministry of Culture. As a student of Chhau, I am focusing on listening to the practice and where it wishes to take me. I have felt very nourished by the space Chhau has given me to express myself as a dancer… and I also love the feeling of dancing with a sword! My artistic blooming has also been nurtured by the time I have spent deepening my relationship with music – world percussion, drums and, in particular, the handpan. Delhi’s music community has helped me to find and reawaken the many songs inside of me, and I am feeling more fascinated by the world of sound than ever before.

Ankita Alemona is an interdisciplinary artist and the founder of Nautanki Creations. Her artistic expression is rooted in Kalaripayatt (an ancient form of martial arts from Kerala, South India), contemporary dance, flow arts and Mayurbhanj Chhau dance.