Rachel Priyanka

Rachel Priyanka is an esteemed dancer, establishing herself in the hearts of the audience nationwide with her awe-inspiring ‘Gaudiya’ dance performances. Also a lecturer at the University of Dhaka, she talks about her struggles and glories in this week’s interview with Star Showbiz.

Tell us something about yourself.

I’m known as both a practitioner of the Gaudiya dance and as a lecturer in the field of dance in Dhaka University. It can be said that my only passion is dancing.

When did you begin dancing, and did you always want to become a dancer?

I was involved in dancing very early on in my life, since I was around four. My passion became my profession. I was certain that I wanted to attain higher studies in dance since I was in grade nine. I was never interested in other subjects. I received a lot of support from my family regarding this choice. I went to Rabindra Bharati University immediately after completing Intermediates,with a scholarship. I completed my bachelors and masters from there.

What are the barriers you had to face in this career?

I’m a stage performer. I perform on huge stages – around fifty feet wide. If I want myself to be visible there, I can’t be too skinny. However, I have to be healthy, and have a nice figure. This poses to be quite difficult. Moreover, dancers have many economic and social barriers. Parents don’t willingly let their children grow up to be dancers. In all the art forms, I feel that dancers have the lowest pay. It takes a lot of hard work to learn classical dance. I’ve been practicing Gaudiya dance for eleven years, yet I feel that I need to learn more. As a dancer, the most important thing is pursuit.

Who was your biggest inspiration?

Definitely my mother. I had many teachers, but Professor Mahua Mukherjee was my Guru. He was the former Dean of Fine Arts inRabindra Bharati University. He was also the head of the department. In the last two years, he has been involved in the Tagore chair in Dhaka University. He’s the one who reformed Gaudiya dance. I began my dancing education at BAFA. The teachers there also inspired me a lot.

Is the education in Kolkata different from Bangladesh?

I can’t talk about the differences as we are the first generation who pioneered the department of dance in Bangladesh. We are the first lecturers. The syllabus was created by us from the things we learned in Kolkata. We modified it to suit our country’s culture and heritage. So, academically, I don’t know the differences yet. However, the student-teacher relationship is quite different here. The devotion is not quite as prevalent.I’ve tried to establish that here, and although I’ve had some success, I still feel as if that can’t be reached. This is due to the vast differences in out way of living. Those who have studied in Kolkata, and are teaching now, I think they all try to develop the student-teacher relationship they experienced in Kolkata.

Do you have any special message for the readers?

The dancers of today are lacking in setting a fixed goal. They’re performing a variety of dances. I believe that this is the era of specialisation. If I do ten different forms of dance, I believe I’ll lose my entity. A fixed goal and hard work are what’s essential, I think.

Interviewed by Joana Nomrata Mazumder

Transcribed by Amina Hossain