Sundararaman said being able to meet in person is important not only to build community, but to choreograph and create performance ideas, adding that being in person makes it easier to blend ideas and explore different directions of dance.īut although many South Asian students may not be able to physically gather and connect through dance this semester, Kamdar said the community will remain united. “It’s definitely impacted us heavily because we go from being so close, like we went from being so close physically every day to just not seeing each other at all,” Patel said. “I think allowing more flexibility because social distancing and stuff, so there are a bunch of different formats available, like tiled video or getting together, but dancing socially distanced,” the senior computer science major said.īut even though some teams have found ways to adjust to the current online environment, the pandemic has still put a strain on their members’ bonds and friendships. The team will participate in a completely virtual competition, with a video submission serving as the requirements for entry, said Aditi Sundararaman, one of Moshka’s captains. While groups such as Dhoom and EntouRAAS won’t be competing this year, Moksha - an Indian classical dance team - will be. “But it is really dependent on what the global pandemic situation is like.” “We’re optimistic,” said Anjali Dhamsania, Masti director and a junior chemical engineering major. Minza and Masti anticipate their next competitions will take place in February 2022. “Even holding a dance is encouraging bad behavior for dance teams who want to compete in the first place.” “The issue with dance is there’s a lot of contact and connection and a lot of planning both from the dance portion but also the dance teams,” Kamdar said. Minza’s executive director, Yash Kamdar, a junior finance and operations management and business analytics major, said the cancellation was necessary to keep participants safe. Some of this university’s own South Asian dance competitions, such as Maryland Minza and Maryland Masti, decided to forgo their competitions this season.
“After you graduate, you’re not going to be able to do Garba or anything, like on a dance team.” “I think college is the time where we really get to express ourselves like this,” Patel said. The senior information science major said the group has gone from practicing three days a week to zero during the fall semester.ĭespite the lack of practice, EntouRAAS has still recruited new members, Patel said, and it’s trying to boost engagement via social media and email.īut the absence of dance performances and competitions due to the pandemic has impacted how South Asian students connect and unite to share their cultures, and for Patel, not being able to perform means she can’t express parts of her identity. Nikita Patel is co-captain of EntouRAAS, who perform the upbeat energetic Gujarati dances Raas and Garba. EntouRAAS, another South Asian dance group at this university, has had its entire season canceled.