ONE way to show how refugees ‘are exploited for political gain’
DANCER AND CHOREOGRAPHER AMINA KHAYYAM FOCUSES ON DISENFRANCHISED WOMEN’S STORIES
AWARD-WINNING dancer and choreographer Amina Khayyam, whose work aims to provide a platform for female voices, explores the struggles of disenfranchised migrant women in her latest production, ONE.
Khayyam’s focus is on contemporary stories of migrants and refugees who she believes are “tarnished for cheap exploitation” by the media and politicians. They spread fear for those “risking their lives to make a better future”.
In an interview with Eastern Eye, the 42-year-old said, “Since the ice age, our pre-historic ancestors have been crossing continents to find better habitual climates so that we got chance to evolve to what we are now.
“Today we are doing no different. Displaced by climate change, war, political extortion and many other reasons, many of us are following that same human trait – crossing continents to survive or better ourselves. Yet, ‘migrants, foreigners and refugees’ are tarnished words. They are (seen as) ‘dirty’ and ‘negative’ by the media and harboured by politicians for political gain.”
Khayyam’s productions use the classical Indian dance form Kathak, which is derived from the Sanskrit word katha or ‘story’ and kathakar or ‘storyteller’.
ONE uses the Kathak techniques of Nritta (pure dance) and Nritya (expression of narrative) to show that refugees, migrants and their critics are connected and part of the same cycle.
Khayyam said, “Our presentation has always been based on the time cycle, which is the number of beats. Within that cycle, we present different stories and compositions, either rhythmical ones or narratives, and we bring those two together.
“I approached the making of ONE to emphasise and subscribe to the fundamental principle of Indian philosophy and classical arts – that there is no beginning or end, but just a cyclic phenomenon where the obsession with territory has no significance.
“I delve into the wealth and power of Kathak techniques to portray the journey of migrants and refugees within that cyclic phenomenon all of us are all journeying through.”
Khayyam set up her dance company in 2013. She has since produced 15 pieces of work, and held more than 130 performances in 40 venues and digital platforms.
Her work has included Yerma (about a woman who suffers the social torment of a childless marriage); A Thousand Faces
(which looked at the imagery of Bollywood beauty and Hollywood glamour to explore the objectification of women in indiscriminate abuse and violence, particularly acid attacks); Slut (which explored labels given to women who do not conform to expectation and how they are manipulated and disempowered); and A Hum in My Heart (which tells the stories of women confronting the social stigma of mental health).
“I work closely with women’s groups, it’s kind of my core of work,” she said. “I work with them to explore, through movement through storytelling, their journey. It could be a refugee’s story, it could be mental health, about childbearing or them being unable to bear a child or it could be domestic violence.
“These stories are everywhere. So if I’m working with a subject like refugees and immigration, then I will work with women who are affected by this subject.”
She added: “The recent rise in hate towards refugees, and ideas like ‘boatloads are coming over’ are some of the negative coverage in the media that I see.
“I just wanted to explore that and knowing people from these backgrounds (refugees and migrants), I see their stories, which is very different to what we get in the media.”
Khayyam not only gives a voice to women, she also helps to “empower” them, she revealed. While her shows are performed by professional dancers and musicians, the women whose stories she tells take part in workshops to enhance their skills or develop their personalities.
She said, “I go and see women in community centres and use Kathak as a medium to explore their stories. I will facilitate workshops where they can explore their stories, their feelings through movement and dance.
“Sometimes we also get them involved in making things for the production. For example, for A Thousand Faces, we needed puppet dolls made out of old fabrics and the women made these. I have made sure they are empowered in that way.”
Khayyam’s desire to tell the stories of south Asian women comes from observing her own community. As a British Bangladeshi, she has seen the differences in the way men and women are treated.
“I come from a background where I see inequality between men and women. Even growing up, among siblings, you see the treatment of the boy to the girl is different, and that always bothered me from a very young age,” she said. “I suppose I started to rebel against that and almost became the black sheep of the family when I questioned it.”
Khayyam has been involved in more than 1,000 Kathak performances in her career, including being the principal performer in Akademi/Southbank’s outdoor spectacle Escapade, and in International Arts’ and Forum for Laboratory Theatre of Manipur’s production of Macbeth-Stage of Blood on the River Thames.
She has also taught BA (Hon) Dance and Culture degree modules at the University of Surrey, and is currently teaching through her company at various locations.
Coming from an admittedly conservative Muslim family from Sylhet, Bangladesh, she had to overcome many obstacles to achieve her dancing dreams.
“As a youngster I always wanted to dance. But I come from a very conservative Islamic family so that wasn’t going to happen,” she said.
“I actually started dancing quite late in my life. I was in my late teens when I started learning it as a hobby. My teachers were very encouraging, and they put me through to perform wherever there were opportunities, such as at melas and wedding. “This when I developed a taste for performance and I started training more seriously. Which then led my debut full-length performance in Kathak and I’ve never stopped working ever since.” ■ ONE is playing as part of the Edinburgh Festival at Dancebase, Scotland’s National Centre for Dance, from Friday (5) until next Wednesday (10).