Organizing a show requires more than an idea and will power.
It requires a team of dedicated individuals who believe in your vision and
dedicate themselves to making it happen. Apart from all the hard work that goes
into it, there is also a lot of love and faith.
The idea for organizing a dance show that portrays the
strength, character and beauty of the Indian woman had been brewing in my head
for quite some time. Coupled with that, telling a story that partly related to
my life in some ways meant a lot to me. I’ve fought social stigma on several
occasions in my life, so when I came across Breakthrough’s work in India and
the music videos they had created to raise awareness on AIDS and violence
against women – I knew my dance would have a purpose.
Social stigma within the Indian community exists even in
this country. I know that from personal experience and that of my friends. I
know of women who go through abuse, domestic violence, life threatening
diseases, and instead of talking about such matters, seeking help and/or
putting a stop to it and gaining self respect, we continue on in our lives
afraid of what our society might think or say about us.
Well, I say: If you can’t speak about such things then just
dance! A few raging emotions gave birth to Raging Rhythms and only because our
team was passionate, dedicated and such wonderful human beings, that this show
became the success it was and we witnessed over 300 people make the drive to
Davis to rise above social stigma and help us raise close to $11,000 for
Breakthrough.
Good persists in almost all of us. We need to recognize it,
streamline it and put it to work. And no matter what life throws at us, we are
all equally entitled to a life filled with love and respect no matter what
other people think. Respect will come to you only if you respect yourself. And
one by one if we all share our stories and work towards educating people, we
WILL get rid of the various stigmas that still plague our culture. We have the
power to make this a better place to live in. All we need to do is believe.
My sincere thanks to the entire team of dancers, volunteers,
and supporters for taking that first step. I surely hope Raging Rhythms is the beginning of many good things to follow.
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| Rising above all odds - a personal journey |
