Sanchita Chakraborty and Bollywood Jig in St. John's

By Kristin Harris Walsh, Project Co-ordinator, Music, Media and Place, Memorial University

A relative newcomer on the dance scene in Newfoundland and Labrador, Bollywood Jig is breaking new ground with its fusion dance form and diverse complement of dancers. Through the vision of troupe founder and leader Sanchita Chakraborty, Bollywood Jig aims to dispel stereotypes and embrace diversity through its choreographic messages.

My June 2010 interview with Sanchita Chakraborty is part of a larger research project on the role of dance schools in Newfoundland and Labrador, particularly how they reflect and push notions of heritage and culture in the province. During our interview, she reflected on the origins of the dance troupe, its evolution to date, and how she sees Bollywood Jig as emblematic of the diversity of St. John's today and where it may go in the future.

Born in Bangladesh and raised in India, Chakraborty originally moved to St. John's in 2001 to attend Memorial University. She is currently the Diversity Coordinator with the Association for New Canadians, based in St. John's. Over the past nine years she has worked in both her personal and professional lives to integrate the cultures of her past and present, and celebrate their distinctive qualities.

Her love of dance began at a young age in Calcutta where she trained first in Indian folk dance and Bengali tribal dance, and later during her university years in jazz and hip hop . She attributes her early encouragement largely to the arts-positive Bengali culture, where music and dance are considered significant aspects of the culture. Chakraborty brought this love of the arts, and dance in particular, with her to St. John's.

Her first opportunity to become part of the dance community in Newfoundland came with a Diwali program at the St. John's Hindu Temple in 2002, and has grown since then. As a performer, Chakraborty has been part of nearly 400 performances to date, many of which as part of Bollywood Jig, her dance troupe. She teaches an introductory class through Wild Lily dance studio. There, dancers are introduced to technique and choreography for Indian folk dance and classical dance. Students progress to her intermediate class, also taught through Wild Lily. The Bollywood Jig troupe was formed in 2004 and currently boasts members of all ages from twelve different countries. Advanced dance students are invited to join the troupe.

As its name implies, Bollywood Jig is a fusion dance troupe that draws from both South Asian and North American influences. Chakraborty sees this diversity as the embodiment of her dancers, their experiences, and her vision for celebrating culture through dance. In our interview, Chakraborty described her name choice for the troupe thus:

"Bollywood is the film industry from India, which is our root of this dance style, and Jig is our own homeland dance style from Newfoundland. … We respect all the cultures and Bollywood jig dance school respects all schools of thought. Dancing thought. So that's why. It's a cross-cultural dance community. So Bollywood and Jig. Bollywood Jig."

To date, Bollywood Jig has been well-received by the local dance community and around the province. Chakroborty says that the group is in demand for performances at multicultural events, festivals and local performance venues. She sees a clear correlation between the increasing profile of the group with acceptance of diversity in all its forms. And while there are still challenges ahead, Bollywood Jig's message of respecting your roots and celebrating new influences is clearly one that resonates with the troupe's members and audiences alike.