Nach baliye!!

For as long as I can remember I have loved dancing. As a kid I would copy the classical dances shown on Doordarshan but only in the close confines of my home. I had no intention of dancing anywhere else. So I gave my sister and her friends a hard time when they wanted me to be a part of a group performance to entertain a Durga Puja audience. I cried during the first rehersal and joined the rest of the girls only after a week had passed. I was in class II then.

My shyness persisted until class XII when finally at a birthday party my friends pulled me in to dance along with them. And from then on as if there was no stopping.

Today infact the tables have turned completely. I encouraged the girls in my lab to attend the Dandiya Nite at NCL Hostel. They did come and being first timers were initially hesitant. But few minutes into it and they began innovating their own steps.

People otherwise calm by nature were seen dancing to the beat of the dhol with abandon. People who were earlier unwilling to pick up the dandiya sticks later were found unwilling to put them down. In all we had such a blast that when we stopped it was way past midnight (!).

Sometimes in life we prefer to stand on the sidelines, feeling afraid to take the plunge on our own. On such occasions let the fun we had on dancing for the first time despite our doubts, act as a reminder about what we could be missing simply because of a fear of faltering.