Sushma Kola, junior at University of Pittsburgh, has an incredible passion for Indian classical dance. She is captain of Pitt Nrityamala, a team of dancers that choreograph their own routines to selected pieces of music. Last year, Pitt Nrityamala placed first in Laasya 2011, the nation’s premier Indian classical dance competition. Teams from Harvard University, Duke University, University of North Carolina, and more compete annually for this prestigious trophy. As the 2011 winners, Pitt Nrityamala hosted the Laasya 2012 contest on February 11, 2012 at University of Pittsburgh. All proceeds from the event were donated to Unite for Sight, a non-profit organization specializing in healthcare delivery to communities around the world to eliminate patient barriers to eye care. Read on to learn more about Sushma and Pitt Nrityamala, the dancing team that has garnered so much recognition nationally for their talent, dedication, and powerful performances!
How did you become involved in Pitt Nrityamala?
I heard about Pitt’s Indian classical dance team the summer before my freshman year at Pitt. Given that I had previously been trained in the style for 15 years, I was really excited to know that I could continue dancing while in college. I found Pitt Nrityamala at the activities fair and tried out for the team. I’ve had a great 3 years dancing and I’m really proud to be captain of such a talented team this year!
What types of dances are incorporated in your routines?
Our routines are comprised of a variety of different Indian classical dance styles, including Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, Kathak, and Odissi. While keeping the routine itself completely traditional, we fuse together different styles and dance to songs that I mix myself. This gives us an edge because our dances and music are catchy and memorable to all audiences.
How long have you been dancing? What inspired you to take up dancing?
I started learning ballet, tap, and jazz when I was 3 years old. By the time I was 6, I really liked dancing to Indian music and decided to give Bharatanatyam a shot. I wanted to learn a style of dance that was more personal to my Indian culture and upbringing. As I got older, I was able to appreciate how intricate the Hindu stories were and it was more fulfilling to bring these stories to life through my dancing.
What are the best parts of dancing? What are the most difficult?
The best part of dancing is definitely the adrenaline rush you get while performing on stage. The second the lights turn on and the music starts, everything else just melts away. For those few minutes that you are dancing, nothing else matters except sharing your art with an appreciative audience. It’s just so much fun!
As for the most difficult part of dancing, I’d have to say, it’s knowing that there’s always room to improve. After you’ve danced for so long, it’s easy to let the motivation slide a little. Especially with Indian classical dance where practicing is painful, continuing to push yourselves requires a special dedication. From a Pitt Nrityamala standpoint, the most difficult part is synchronization amongst 10 dancers. Each girl has her own style, so after everyone learns the choreography, the most grueling process is easily breaking down each element to ensure that we are all doing it uniformly and look like a team.
How did you feel when Pitt Nrityamala won Laasya 2011?
Speechless. Emotional. Completely overwhelmed. To this day, I still can’t believe it happened. We were all standing together on the stage at the University of Maryland hearing third and second places being awarded. I felt all of us holding our breath for the first place announcement, and when we heard Pitt’s name announced, chaos instantly broke out. There was so much screaming, jumping up and down, and of course, crying. I don’t think any of us could believe it and it was so gratifying after our months of hard work and long practices. That day, a new Pitt Nrityamala was born. We went from being that “small, insignificant classical dance team” on campus to one that had just accomplished something no other Pitt dance team had done before. We were first place winners. We were the national champions. That is a moment I will never forget.
What was the most difficult thing about hosting Laasya 2012? What was the best part of the overall experience?
I think the most difficult part of hosting Laasya 2012 was a mix of raising enough money to actually run the competition and getting people interested and excited about something foreign to them. It’s hard to convince people to fund your organization and to come to the show when it’s a first time competition at Pitt. But in spite of that, we had 1,000 attendees and raised over $9,000 for our charity, Unite for Sight, so not too shabby! The best parts of Laasya 2012 were seeing all of the collegiate teams from across the nation come together and have a great time at Pitt. It was awesome knowing that we were responsible for hosting a memorable weekend for all of them, one where they were able to dance in front of a huge audience, gain national recognition for their talent, and bond with similar teams from around the country. It was such a successful competition from start to finish and we really hope the Pitt community gets excited for our competition next year!
Are there any famous dancers that you look up to?
I really look up to my guru who has instilled in me this passion to continue dancing. I’ve been learning Bharatanatyam in Chicago from Sushmita Arunkumar since I was little. I always admire her attention to detail and her eye for perfection, both things I have tried to implement as captain of Pitt Nrityamala. Sushmita Aunty was the first to show me a creative approach to choreographing classical pieces from the actual steps to the formations. I will always be thankful that she pushed me to work hard and to dance better each day, and I’m indebted to her for sharing with me a beautiful art form that has given me so much happiness.
What are some of your favorite memories with your fellow dancers on Pitt Nrityamala?
I’d have to say our team tradition of getting Coldstone after performances in any state and our Nrityamala sleepovers. It’s really fun to hang out with the girls outside of practice because then we really get to know each other and just goof off. I’ve been blessed with an incredibly fun-loving team and though we work hard, there is never a day without people cracking jokes and all of us laughing hysterically! Perhaps my favorite memory this year was making our team Intro Video for Laasya 2012. We decided to take an unconventional approach and center our video on the plot of ninjas stealing our first place trophy. It was so much fun dressing up as ninjas and filming on campus, though we certainly got a lot of weird looks! The video was a big hit at Laasya and the filming process definitely made for a lot of crazy moments and enough bloopers to last a lifetime.
Are you going to pursue dancing in the future after you graduate from Pitt?
Of course! Dancing has given me so much from the day I started learning that I can honestly never dream of a life without it. I will continue to be involved in and support Pitt Nrityamala as a proud alumnus after I graduate. I’m so excited to see where this team goes in the future, and one day I hope to be teaching Indian classical dance to students of my own.
What advice would you give to other dancers?
Continue. Literally one word. We have all worked so hard to develop ourselves as dancers, and I think one of the saddest things is seeing people stop after devoting so much of their lives to perfecting their art. College has shown me that I don’t have to give up dancing even if I’m away from home. I’ve grown exponentially as an individual and as a dancer because I’ve stayed involved throughout college. I’ve made a fantastic group of friends who share my love for Indian classical dance and who will stand by my side for the rest of my life. Because I chose to pursue my passion, I’ve learned more about myself as a dancer and as a person my 3 years at Pitt than I have in my entire life. And with that, I wish everyone a lifetime of dancing and many people to share it with!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Pitt chapter.