India is a culturally rich country where every state has its language, cuisine, culture and unique dance forms. To commemorate the rich culture, various classical dance forms have been developed for centuries now, one of them being Kathak.
0ne of the most elegant and popular classical dance forms of India, Kathak, revolves around the concept of storytelling. It’s an art form with inexplicable charm, mesmerizing footwork and graceful movements originating from North India.
One such exemplary Kathak dancer is Isha Kathavate. She was just six years of age when she danced, imitating Hema Malini from the television serial on Doordarshan called ‘Nupur’ and Isha knew that classical dance was her calling.
For past more than 20 years, she has been under the guidance of Kathak exponent Guru Pandita Maneesha Sathe, a torchbearer of Padmashree Pt. Gopi Krishnaji’s style of Kathak.
Isha now is performing, teaching, choreographing, compering and writing on dance related topics. With an M.A. degree in Kathak, she has been recently awarded a research fellowship by CCRT, Ministry of Culture, Govt. of India. Having performed at various dance festivals all around India, she has a few awards to her credit.
She is a founder of Ishalaya, School of Kathak which has completed 16 years recently. Many disciples are trained under her tutelage and being a part of Ishalaya’s Performing Ensemble have performed at various dance concerts, festivals and corporate events both solo and in a group.
A creative artist, she has been experimenting with choreographies with other dance forms like Jazz, Modern and Folk. She has travelled abroad with Shiamak Davar’s Institute for a performance at the Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in Melbourne and also worked as an Instructor at his Pune Centre.
Driven by passion as Kathak ignites her soul, Isha has made a mark in this field with many achievements at her end.
She is not only an accomplished performer but a dedicated teacher. “Kathak dance develops one’s personality, it improves concentration, focus, memory, speech clarity, increases attention span and coordination, a great stress buster too!”, adds Isha.
Ishalaya School of Kathak offers courses from Beginners level to Postgraduate level where girls as tender as 8 years old are learning exceptionally well to mesmerize the audience.
Ishalaya has now opened its door in Bandra at KCA hall with regular classes. With the advent of major adoption of Western culture and learning western dance forms which are commonly seen but coming back to one’s roots is always rewarding and preserves our rich cultural heritage too!
Kathak combines all elements of physical exercise especially Cardio so it is today even seen as a great workout. Housewives too can learn the dance form simply as a hobby and for creative engagement which is extremely crucial for one’s mental health. Ladies can come together and enjoy these classes to reap the benefits of their “me-time” as timings are convenient at a reasonable affair.
“During the lockdown like others, my classes were online. Keeping in mind young girls’ mental health, I devised some methods for the classes to keep my students motivated. A lot of parents sought my counsel and they avert that consistent Kathak lessons aided in keeping their sanity! But as the things ease out now, physical classes have been resumed and what’s better than learning face to face,” says Isha.
So Bandraites if you are willing to learn Kathak, you may pick it up as an individual, or introduce it to your child and even as a mother-daughter duo, you’re indeed welcome. These are Certified courses affiliated to Gandharva Mahavidyalaya (a legacy institute of performing arts) and Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed University, Pune, recognized in India as well as abroad.
So come on grab your ghungroos and let’s catch the beat…Kathak way!
Ishalaya – School of Kathak
Kanara Catholic Association, Veronica Road, Bandra West, Mumbai 400050
Call: +91-9923284309
Website: www.ishakathavate.com
You can follow Ishalaya – School of Kathak on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube
