Athlone girl nominated for Dance Awards Ireland
Aariya Dutta, an Indian classical dance and ballet exponent, was recently nominated for Dance Awards Ireland, in the Traditional and Cultural Contribution category. The awards night is slated for October 24 at Mansion House, Dublin. Dance Awards Ireland are an all-island awards celebrating outstanding achievement in dance, across disciplines and stages, throughout Ireland.
A third year student at Athlone Community College, Aariya came across the Dance Awards Ireland on Instagram, and sent in her entry to be considered for nomination. “I discussed it with my father and then sent on a video entry of my dance. They reached out to me and did a thorough background check of my dance experience. The vetting included questions they asked me, past videos of my performances and social media profiles,” shared Aariya who later learned that she had been nominated in the Traditional and Cultural Contribution category.
Aariya has been learning Kathak, an Indian classical dance form, since the age of six in Kolkata, under the guidance of Swapna Chakraborty. Three years ago she moved to Ireland with her parents, and her Kathak lessons went from real to virtual, with Aaheli Chakraborty, Swapna's daughter, and a dancer of repute in the US.
Although she took it in her stride, the relocation to Ireland wasn't entirely seamless, especially in terms of finding her groove. Aariya shared that it was dance that helped her cope with the change. “It rooted me into the new place. I joined St Peter's school, and when I first performed there, my fellow students didn't understand much, some were even laughing at me. The same thing happened again at Community College as well, but I knew that I should persist on, for my art brings me joy,” explained Aariya. She added that most of her friends have come around, and have taken to her dance.
Kathak is her dance language, one that not many understand here, so Aariya began learning ballet at the Shannon Dance Academy. She soon found her tribe. “I love ballet, my teacher Judith Sibley is very encouraging and I have made friends at the ballet school,” said Aariya, who was recently accepted at the Youth Ballet West as a junior associate.
Having performed at many an Indian community cultural events like ones hosted by Bandhan Athlone, Aariya is a well known name in the wider Indian and Bengali community. She was thrilled that word of her dance prowess had reached the organisers of Ireland's Greatest Talent, a multicultural talent competition held in Dublin. “They approached me and have invited me to perform at this year's event on October 23. I will be performing a Kathak and Ballet blend, to showcase the talent I brought to Ireland, and one that Ireland gave me,” said Aariya, who is also a martial artist and practices Taekwondo.
The young girl hopes to teach Kathak professionally some day, following in the footsteps of her mentor, Aaheli Chakraborty, who Aariya looks up to with deep regard.