How the juniors pulled together an exceptional Bollywood performance in just one week
Annie Liu
Staff Writer
This year, the juniors treated AHS to an impressive Bollywood dance as part of their Spirit Week performance that drew thunderous applause from the bleachers, but what might surprise many audience members is that the final dance was prepared in just one week’s time.
Although the class of 2020 had been working hard on their Spirit Week performance throughout the summer, they ran into difficulties that ultimately led to the need for a new Bollywood choreography.
“We had troubles with coordinating the dances and everything, so we had to make a change,” said one of the new choreographers, Rohit Ravi (11). “The old choreographers were really good—they were really spirited and they did really good things, but unfortunately they had a really tight schedule during spirit week where they could not make it [to every practice], and we had to make a new choreography.” The Eagle Era reached out to the original choreographers, but they declined to comment on the situation.
Another significant factor that led to the change was the perceived level of difficulty of the original dance as compared to the new one. For some dancers, the process of learning the old dance presented itself as a challenge.
“The original choreographers taught well, but the dance didn’t come naturally to me. There were some steps that were awkward,” explained one of the dancers, who wished to stay anonymous. “It just wasn’t falling together—I think the new dance is easier.”
Despite the extremely short notice for the change in plans, the new choreographers were able to successfully create and teach the dance to all of the members within their limited time frame. The secret? It was largely due to the choreographers’ determination and unfailing enthusiasm.
“[It was] super challenging—we literally had three or four days [to complete the dance]…but we were really really committed, and we just made sure we were really patient with everybody,” said Tamanna Dilip (11), another one of the new choreographers. “We made sure that they were all having fun.”
It is evident that their efforts to make the dancers feel comfortable have paid off. Not only did the performers enjoy the process of preparing and rehearsing the dance, but the learning process was also a pivotal moment for some dancers.
“I learned how to dance in front of an audience, and it helped me gain confidence, because I’m usually really [self-conscious] about my dancing,” said Prisha Davda (11), one of the Bollywood dancers, as she reflected on being a part of the final performance. “It taught me how to just go up there and enjoy yourself.”
For many others, the most important aspect of the performance wasn’t limited to just the dance—it was the unity that the task inspired in the class of 2020. The challenging process ultimately proved to bring the juniors closer together. When asked about why he felt the performance was able to be conducted so successfully in so little time, Ravi was quick to give credit to everyone who was involved.
“[It was because of] the class. The class of 2020. Not us [the choreographers]—we choreographed, but if the people don’t participate, then it’s not reciprocating,” he explained. “When people come, then their support encourages us to do more.”
Caption: The juniors perform their Bollywood dance during the Monday lunch rally. “We made it pretty simple. It was more of a simple dance for everyone than a complex dance,” Ravi explained about the choreography. “It was more [about] unity—I think that’s [how] class of 2020 really came in there.” (PC: Yearbook staff)
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