Dancing Maniacs
Bollywood from Salem Explorers on Vimeo.
(Maya) We arrived in New Delhi a day earlier that we thought so we could pick an activity to do in the meantime. Because it was raining we decided to do a dance class. When we entered the building we were presented with marigold flower necklaces and brown powder dots on our foreheads. Then we met our dance instructor and got started dancing.
The first dance that we undertook was called Dandia. You do this dance at parties or weddings or any special event and you use a pair of wooden sticks. The Salem family is not a dancing type of family. We were not as good as the teacher. Our dance instructor played the song for us and it was a traditional Indian song. We only did half of the song, so the dance was only about a minute long but it took us a half an hour to make the dance perfect.
Belly dancing. That was our second accomplishment. We had the same teacher as we did for our Dandia dance. For this dance of course our dad had to sit out because belly dancing is not his thing. Belly dancing is harder than you think. You have to be able to move your body swiftly and smoothly. Our teacher could move her body like she wasn’t human. Again we didn’t do the whole song. Our dance instructor was very firm she had to make everything ideal as possible. That was our last dance with her.
The third dance was hip-hop. At this dance institution there is a dance group called the Swag Gang Crew. So one of the members of that group taught us a dance to a Justin Bieber song. Our teacher looked like he was 15 years old. He blasted the music and it felt like we were in a night club. This dance was only like 35 seconds long, but it was fun and funny because he would sing along with the music and he would sing really loudly. After every dance somebody would come in and film the finished product.
Last but not least, we did a dance called Bollywood dancing. Bollywood is like Hollywood. India makes Bollywood movies and there are always big dances during the film. This was my favorite dance especially because of the teacher – I loved her! The first part of the dance was guitar solos, that’s a good start. This was the longest dance it was about 3 minutes long. All of these song were in Hindi, one of the official languages of India. It was a very catchy tune and I still can’t get it out of my head. Sadly the dance ended and we performed for the videographers.
Well done Salems! And well written Maya. Will this be shown as opener for the next Prov Equity firm-wide meeting?
Great writing Miss Maya!! We look forward to reading all of your posts and find so many of your experiences to be just amazing. I know Julia would love to Bollywood dance with you any time! It could be like your very own “Grooves” class. Keep having fun…looks like that part comes easy! The Stanchina Family misses you.
That’s awesome! Great dancing and great writing Brown Sugar!! Love the air guitar at the beginning.
Maya,
I would like to give you kudos for the great title for the blog. You all look like gentle maniacs, however. Phenomenal writing about the various dances. You seem to be really enjoying the trip. I am prepared to teach you a few Bollywood songs upon your return.
Papa
When we did our Sabbatical trip with our girls the same age as you are we called it “QFT” Quality Family Time. Well this QFT at it’s best. We are enjoying your journey.
Kathleen and Jeff Larsen
Maya great writing! I love the dance moves, Halle you looked like you were really getting into it! Overall great dancing Salem family! Miss you guys
Dear Paul,
Better keep the day job – cant see you making the finals of any countries ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ let alone a role as a back up dancer in a Bollywood movie – even if you did go all the way to India for your audition.
PS – the girls nailed as usual.
Hi Maya
What do the brown powder dots represent? Great blog and even better dance moves!!! Is your dad OK? He was having convulsions in the back row. I hope he received the medical attention he needed right away! That looks so fun. You get my vote for best Salem dancer.
Miss you lots-
Aunty Francine
AMAZING!! MORE DANCING!!!! And Halle – LOVE the hair flipping!!!
Wow! I’d say that is pretty spectacular! Was there a talent scout present? I remember many years ago seeing a Bollywood movie where they were dancing in the snow in their bare feet. Did you teach them about snow?? Do we get to see the belly dancing video?