Stepping out of the comfort zone

African-American Mark Brown who began to learn Odissi and Bharatanatyam in his early forties has earned quite a name for himself in the Indian diaspora in the US.

Dance and age have no boundaries and language no barrier. The pandemic has made it clear to all of us that in our moments of great distress, we all turn towards the arts for succour. Perhaps this was a trigger too for Mark Brown, an African-American and a Memphian working with the Shelby county health department. In his early forties, he decided to follow his heart, never mind the unconventional path it led him onto. With his decision, Mark not only stepped out of his comfort zone but also warmed the hearts of several.

Dance had always attracted him and when he danced, Mark says he felt a sense of joy that was indescribable. However, Indian classical dances are arguably some of the most difficult forms of performing arts and certainly not easy to pick up in your early forties. But Mark, who started taking ballet and pilates classes in 2014, began learning Bharatanatyam in 2015. He was intrigued by its intrinsic beauty and geometry.

Shortly afterwards, he was introduced to another classical style, Odissi. Odissi demands great coordination between one's eyes, wrist, and torso and expects the kind of grace from a dancer that is hard to achieve. But Mark was not the one to be deterred by these challenges. He landed up at an event organised by an acclaimed Odissi dancer residing in Memphis, Haimanti Basu, who not only runs a dance school but is also the recipient of several awards and accolades for her work in promoting Indian culture and heritage in the USA.

It took Ms Basu a while to make him feel comfortable with the difficult dance moves of Odissi. However, from 2016 to 2019, he strived on and learnt many pure dance pieces. Haimanti Basu became his respected 'Guru Basu'.

Odissi is a highly inspired, passionate, ecstatic, and sensuous form of dance with a history of almost 2,000 years. it is this history of the form that inspired Mark even as he got to understand more about the temple sculptures in Odisha that are historically connected with the moves incorporated in the classical form. But despite the movements being slow and graceful, they demand control and precision which Mark gradually mastered. He gave his first solo performance at the St Francis auditorium in the land of Elvis. Mark's presentation enthralled the packed audience who rewarded him with thunderous applause.

That was just the beginning for him. Requests started pouring in for him to perform at many events and places. Since then, Mark has not only performed at several prestigious venues but has also honed his Bharatanatyam skills under Guru Simanti Chatterjee, another eminent classical dance exponent. Recently, he performed a Bharatanatyam piece based on the poem Basonti, hey bhubanomohini composed by poet and Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. His depiction of Spring, on which the poem is based, mesmerised one and all.

Today, Mark Brown is an inspiration to not only his community but beyond. He personifies the saying that age is just in the mind.