The founders of Nivesaa showcased their choreographing skills in a special performance
Aastha Gulati
Aastha Gulati and Sahiba Singh were teenagers when they met each other in a high school in Delhi. Fifteen years down the line, the two have grown up quite a bit, but what hasn’t changed is the silent understanding between the two that led one of them to leave their seven-year-old corporate job and build an all-inclusive dance academy that would not only teach skills of graceful movement but also the tenets of how to live a fit and healthy life. The twin founders of Nivesaa showcased the best of their choreography in a potpourri of dance forms at the ADA Ranga Mandira, called InSpirit 2 on Sunday.
Brought up in the national capital, the 29 year olds are nothing if not entirely invested in the values of dance and a cultural approach to wellness. “Nivesaa comes from the Sanskrit nivesh which means investment. In 2012, when Sahiba called me in Mumbai from Bengaluru to share a dream of starting a centre for performing arts that would help people invest in their own mind, body and soul, the path was clear for me,” says Aastha who then moved to the city and made it her home. Skilled at Kathak, cha cha, ballet, lyrical jazz, belly dancing, Indian contemporary and salsa, Aastha is also, amazingly, a hypnotherapist with over three degrees in spiritual healing approaches.
Trained in Attakalari, with jazz and ballet under her expert belt, Sahiba is the yin to Aastha’s yang. “It’s amazing to have a partner whom you know so well. Our understanding is effortless and because we are also friends outside of Nivesaa, we are invested in each other’s well-being as well. If Aastha is not feeling well one day, I know that she shouldn’t be working. We manage because we complement each other in every aspect. We are running a company of eight dancers in addition to teaching classes every single day, so with classes in the morning and choreography in the evening, our days are decidedly busy,” says Sahiba.
Their 85 students took turns on the stage for last night’s show which was designed entirely by the two friends. “We often get positive feedback from parents who are happy that the child has had a surge in self-confidence since coming to our classes. And that’s the focus of our work, really,” says Aastha, who also finds time to go for guitar lessons these days. Sahiba finishes, “To anyone who cannot follow their dreams and hates getting up to go to work every day, I say, just take the leap.”
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( Source : deccan chronicle )
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