- Maya Norbu

As Mom and I swerved through the crowded streets of this unfamiliar city, dodging families of five squeezed onto a single motorcycle, huge screeching buses pulling up less than an inch away from us, rickshaws so crowded that the extra people were dangling out the sides and into the oncoming lanes of traffic, interspersed with cows strolling leisurely through the chaotic intersections, it was then that I began to realize how far away from home I really was, I began to ponder what I was doing in India, and if I could make it.



But as we drove through the gates of Kalakshetra, all my doubts were cleared, I felt as if we’d entered into another world. Suddenly, the city and all of its hustle and bustle had died away and we were left with this paradise. It looked as if we were in a jungle, the various flower’s strong aroma floated around the campus, crows strutted around proudly, as if they owned the place and everyone we passed had a smile on their face. We pulled up to the central office and stepped onto Kalakshetra ground fro the first time. As we stood there looking around in awe, someone was walking towards us with a brisk yet elegant stride. I immediately knew she was somebody important. And I was right.

Shortly after this first meeting, I returned to Kalakshetra to start a new year at Besant Arundale Senior Secondary School.



My first day at B.A.S.S.S. was probably one of the scariest days of my life. Everyone was in uniform. Except me. I was the only Westerner there, and therefore the only student who didn’t know Hindi or Tamil, or both. I didn’t know how to act, when to speak, and I didn’t understand what was being taught. At Lunch, I didn’t eat, because I had never eaten with my hands and was too shy to ask how they scooped up the fluent ‘curd’ and somehow got it neatly into their mouths, one bite after the next. I wondered if this place could be any more incredibly different than my ‘American’ life. I doubted it.

The first few weeks were baffling. I didn’t know what a ‘dhavani’ was, I didn’t like having to wear a uniform, I found the amount of homework crazy, I didn’t understand what an ‘Akka’ was and I most certainly did not know what ‘Bhajan’ was. But eventually, with the help of, or actually because of Leela Akka, Monisha Aunty, my wonderful classmates and many other people, I gradually settled in. I learned how to tie my ‘dhavani’, even. And once I started dance, I felt right at home. I would look forward to dance every day, and it kept me motivated at school.

I think the highlight of my time at Kalakshetra was definitely the performances. I remember getting ready, and running to the theater, worried about being late, again. I loved the excitement buzzing around the theater. Everyone dressed up and ready to be awed. And as the curtains opened and the performance began, you see these artists on stage, and they all love what they do so much, and every movement is so perfect and so disciplined, it’s breathtaking. And then off to the side are the musicians, who tie everything together with their musical.

Everyone in the college seemed so happy to be there and enjoyed nothing more than their artistic disciplines whether dance, music or visual arts. Even as they walked from one class to another they were practicing hand and eye movements or trilling up the musical scale. I had never seen the discipline that these students put into their arts, I guess it shows that if you really want something, you exert your whole self constantly.



If my time at Kalakshetra were to be described in one word, it would have to be growth. Everything that I went through, the fun and even the challenging has helped me to advance as a person, and I hope to return often and revisit all the great memories compiled during my time there.

- Maya Norbu