Pitt Indian classical dance team hosts Laasya

The lights shone down, highlighting dresses of colorful silk as the air resonated with the… The lights shone down, highlighting dresses of colorful silk as the air resonated with the rustling of bells. The 2012 Laasya competition had begun.

Pitt’s Indian classical dance team, Nrityamala, hosted the four-hour national dance competition Saturday, which featured eight premier collegiate teams from across the East Coast. The event drew more than 500 people and doubled as a fundraiser — a portion of its ticket-sale revenue was donated to the charity Unite For Sight, an organization that works to alleviate barriers to eye care.

Pitt alumnus Nitin Madhav, the master of ceremonies, explained the cultural tradition of Laasya.

“Laasya, the name of the competition, is the Sanskrit word for the dance performed by the goddess Parvati to express her happiness, and is filled with grace and beauty,” Madhav said.

Srinivasa Prasad International Foundation for Performing Arts, a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting and encouraging North American youths to pursue South Asian arts through scholarships, workshops and lectures, sponsored the event.

Srinivasa Prasad spokeswoman Bindu Madhavi Gutti said she was thrilled about Laasya.

“It’s amazing that the involved students were able to get organized and make such a success. They’ve come a long way from when I was a student. It’s gotten to the stage, and there’s actual competition, and talent is being recognized,” she said.

Sophomore Krishma Kumar performed for the first time with Nrityamala on Saturday. She explained the evolution of the form in Indian classical dance.

“[This format] does have a religious component, but it’s more tradition-based. Especially with the more modern pieces, it’s the style that has remained; the religion has become the background,” Kumar said.

Rather than dominating each recital, the Hindu religious tradition colored the pieces, giving the performers a mythological template to play upon. While some groups remained traditional, featuring stories from the epic Ramayana, others chose a modern twist, with one squad drawing thematic content from Disney’s Cinderella.

The troupes’ musical selections ranged from hip-hop to traditional songs. Each performance shared a common thread: intricate steps, hand gestures and minute facial expressions combining to tell a story.

“A very interesting part of dance is the language of gestures and mimes. Hand gestures denote specific ideas and are used to depict a story or simply the pure joy of motion,” Madhav said.

Kumar said that most of the women in Laasya started dancing at the age of 7 or 8, and one of the youngest began her lessons at the age of 4.

“Most of the girls have been dancing for 12 years at least, if not more,” Kumar said.

Madhav also discussed the work that goes into building a performance.

“This was not put together in the last few months. The fact that these women can do that and practice and have a full course load is amazing. There are really no shortcuts to what is on stage here,” he said.

The night featured other Pittsburgh dance groups — Steel City Bhangra, PantherRaas, the Pitt Ballet Club and three other South Asian and African dance groups — whose members performed but did not compete.

At the end of the night, four judges compiled scores based on music, synchronization, choreography, technique, mastery of story and theme. They then awarded first, second and third place finishes and the congeniality award.

Rutgers’ team walked away with third place, and Duke placed second. The University of Maryland’s team, Moksha, captured the audience with its visualization of expression, an essential component of Indian dance, and received first place for its efforts.

Moksha depicted vignettes of four women expressing powerful emotions: love, fear, sorrow, anger and peace. In addition to returning home with the first-place trophy, Maryland’s team was also awarded the congeniality award, recognizing the team’s cooperation and pleasant disposition throughout the competition.

“For all the work we put in, extra practices, and how they brought it all to the stage — we’re just so proud,” said Vishney Ambalavanar, one of the captains of Maryland’s team.

The Maryland team, which also won the competition in 2010, impressed Kumar.

“Clearly they did a very good job — you could see [the emotions], all the expressions on their faces. Everything was very well done. It all came together,” she said.

Ramya Tallapragada, a Maryland team captain, was excited with her team’s success.

“Expressing the culture as well as bringing it to a level that can be appreciated by any audience — that’s what we’re really trying to do,” she said.