Education and the arts

I attended a Bharat Natyam arangetram last night. The artist who was making her debut as a professional dancer, Aditi, is the daughter of a relative of mine. The Guru was Padmasri Dr. Ananda Shankar, a well-known dancer in Hyderabad. The hall was full and we entered as the introductory speech led to the stirrings of the live orchestra. It was an engrossing two-hour performance and Aditi held the interest of the audience for the entire duration. She has an expressive face and a stamina that belies her petite form. The musical support was excellent and the preface to each item, provided by Ananda Shankar set the tone for what was to come.

At the end, a few words were said by the Guru not just about the student but also about art in general. She gave credit to the parents for honoring the dancing potential of their daughter by enabling her passion. As per rough statistics, she pointed out that across various genres of classical dance forms all across the country, if one were to count the number of artists,they would add up to no more than 5000 - 10,000. What an abysmally small number for a country of a 1.2 billion people, a country that boasts of a great heritage in the fine arts?

The reason for this poor showing is the popular craze among parents of this generation to make doctors and engineers out of their children regardless of their innate talents and aptitude. In the quest for such degrees, no effort or expense is spared. Entire childhoods are sacrificed at the altar of these ambitions. Seldom do parents indulge the natural talents of their children particularly if it goes against the common grain. A society composed entirely of engineers and doctors would be an empty one if there was no value for the arts. Pursuit of natural talents, honing of innate artistic abilities, brings a joy and completion to one's life purpose, even if we don't pursue it professionally. Creativity is its own reward. Not every dancer can win a Padmasri and not every artist may reach the stature of M.F. Hussain but every time a girl with a graceful step prepares to dance even if only to reduce the stress of a working day or a boy picks up a brush to paint from his imagination, the world is a better place. How? As each person pursues their inherent ability to create, the resulting sense of well-being is communicated by the person and his art. In this stressful world of ours, if we are to feel good about ourselves, we need creative outlets that the arts provide.

But time is in short supply. How do I learn these creative techniques? The answer lies in prioritizing. We all are allotted the same amount of time each day that we live. If we put individual well-being on the top of our list, I am sure time will be available. For me the first place to start is to participate in such live cultural events that drive home the point that life is not just about degrees and paychecks. I choose to spend Saturday evening at a music or dance recital and appreciate the arts. Next step would be to try it myself. And then to encourage my child to do the same.

Under water

I have a new goal this summer - learning to swim. There are some items that have been on my "to-do" list for decades and this is one of them. I don't particularly have a phobia for water and it seemed like a cool thing to learn. The barriers however, were many, beginning with the lack of a swimming pool that was conveniently located, inhibition in wearing a swimsuit, finding a suitable coach and of course, the usual excuse - I just don't have time for this. When the time is right, most excuses simply vanish (or should I say, dissolve?).

I have a pool in the building where I now live. I bought a modest swimsuit that suits my sensibilities. My daughter is my coach. And I truly do have the time now. As I always say, there are a 100 reasons to NOT do something. There is only one reason do something - because you want to. Right now, I want to learn to swim.

Aparna has been a great teacher so far. I am her first student and she is amazingly intuitive in breaking it down to small steps and incredibly patient. As adults, we snap much more at children when they fail to master what appears to be simple tasks to us grownups. Add to that the emotionally charged atmosphere of a parent-child relationship. It is almost as bad as your spouse teaching you to drive a car. But when the child teaches, perhaps there is something about this upside-down situation that removes the obstacles.

I remember taking Aparna to the local pool 3 days a week from age 2 to 6 to first learn and then master swimming. I had noticed her comfort when immersed in water at her first bath in the initial two weeks of her life. She was happy to jump into the pool and obediently followed the instructions of the youngsters who served as coaches for little kids in the Santa Clara pool in California. She would come out happy, tired and extremely hungry. In the car on the way back home, she would gobble the food, drink juice and fall asleep. It took a lot of effort for me to make time on weekday evenings after work to ensure she did not miss any classes. But today, when I see her swimming so effortlessly I feel so happy and proud. Not of her talent or my contribution but the fact that when a natural talent is honed, it brings joy to the person and to others as well. Although there were years when she did not get into a pool, she takes to the water like a fish, each time she has the opportunity. Quite often Aparna is asked by total strangers if she competes in swimming meets.

Now the roles are reversed and she is leading me. What better way for me to try my hand (and feet) at something new. I would like to put new things on my to-do list once this one gets crossed off.