'I followed my heart'

PASSIONATE DANSEUSE

Rani Khanam, a name synonymous with sufi-kathak dance was here in the City to conduct a workshop for students.

She spoke to Metrolife about the challenges that she had to face as a dancer.
“Being a practitioner of Islam, I was deep into spirituality. So when I was learning kathak, I started innovating. Just as we perform a vandana before we start the dance recital, I conceptualised a dance on Islamic verses which was similar to a
vandana. I belong to a very orthodox family.

So it was difficult for me to continue my education in dance as there was immense opposition from my family. There were days when I had to tie a cloth around my ghungroo and dance so that no one was disturbed. But I decided to go on and follow my heart,” says Rani.

A disciple of kathak maestro Birju Maharaj, she trained under him for around ten years and says those ten years were the golden period of her life.

“He polished me and my dancing skills. He taught me with so much zeal and
dedication. I admire him and consider myself lucky to be his student,” she adds.

Coming back to her passion for dance, she says a bhav can be expressed in many ways.
“Sufi compositions are full of knowledge and depth and can be adapted to any dance form. Spirituality can be portrayed beautifully through sufi compositions,” she explains.

She choreographs her dance on Islamic verses and has performed in various countries along with her dance team.

“The awareness regarding the sufi style is increasing gradually. I have worked with many sufi artistes from various countries like Egypt, Persia etc and consider
myself lucky to have got such an opportunity,” she informs.

She often performs in Mazars and has also performed in Bareily Sharif , a place where eminent dancers from across the country perform to dedicate their art to the almighty.

“Though the awareness regarding this form of dance is very low, the Hindi movies have done their bit in increasing awareness regarding sufi songs.

However, what they show in the movies is very shallow. There is a very deep meaning attached to each and every verse in sufi music,” she informs. 

Rani tries to go back to the roots of kathak and aims to showcase how Lucknow
Gharana is influenced by the sufi style. “I conduct dance festivals in Delhi and invite a lot of eminent dancers from various fields. There is a lot of appreciation for such styles of dance,” she adds.

She has choreographed on verses written by some eminent poets and saints like Hazrat Amir Khusron and danced on many Sufiana Halas (rhythmic compositions).

“These compositions need true expressions and the words touch your heart. I try and understand the meaning of the verses before I dance or choreograph,” she adds.

The dancer has performed in the City a couple of times and says she received a
good response and a lot of appreciation from people in the City. However, she wishes to perform on a bigger platform in Bangalore.

“People here admire and appreciate art and I want to perform for a longer duration and on a bigger platform,” she sums up.