Dreams on Doordarshan and the First Test of Faith!
Sometimes, a dream is born quietly—on a black-and-white television screen, in the eyes of a child who doesn’t yet understand the art but already belongs to it.
By the time I was introduced to the basics of Bharatanatyam, a new world slowly began opening up for me—through our television screen. Those were the days when Doordarshan (DD National) was the only channel we watched. Occasionally, Bharatanatyam performances would be telecast, accompanied by live musicians, rich costumes, and powerful expressions.
My family would watch with curiosity, though they couldn’t really understand what was being performed. Honestly, even I didn’t understand the compositions back then—I was too young for that. But something else caught my attention. The movement, the rhythm, the costumes, the stage presence—they mesmerized me.
Every time I watched a performance, I would go to sleep dreaming that one day, I too would perform like that, with live music, on a big stage.
One day, a family friend visited our house while I was deeply absorbed in one such classical dance program. He noticed my intense interest and told my parents, “This girl is truly passionate—please let her learn this art seriously.” My mother shared that I was already attending a dance class. That’s when he suggested that I deserved better training.
When myparents asked how to find it, he offered to help. Being a percussionist and part of the artist fraternity, it was easier for him to explore options. He did find some excellent training possibilities—but the fees were far beyond what my family could afford. With heavy hearts, my parents postponed the idea and decided to continue my training where I was.
Years passed, and then came an important milestone—my first dance examination. Strangely, I was overwhelmed with fear. I refused to appear for the exam, terrified that if I failed, my father—who wasn’t very vocal about my dancing—might stop my classes altogether, even though he quietly supported me. That day, my mother pushed me to go. And my father did something I will never forget. He held my hand and took me to the exam center. Just before I entered the hall, he said, “I know you have practiced well and you love dancing. You will do well. Just imagine it’s your normal class, not an exam.”
Those simple words changed something inside me. My fear disappeared. That day, I not only appeared for my exam—I overcame exam anxiety forever. What were the results? Did myparents finally agree to look for better training? And did that little girl’s dream—born in front of a Doordarshan screen—begin to take shape? That’s a story for the next chapter of my journey.
- Kalpita Rane