An Enriching Experience

Never thought I would say this, but yes, I’ve enjoyed a cultural event! We had a company Deepavali dinner last week and surprisingly I found it entertaining (if only you know how much I usually dislike all these social functions that we are made to attend).

We were cursing all the way to Sutra House, being stuck in the after-work traffic and worst still, it was pouring when we left the office. We finally arrived at Persiaran Titiwangsa, where the quaint bungalow is situation. Sutra House is very artistically designed and owned by Ramli Ibrahim, a Malaysian dancer and choreographer who is internationally acclaimed (For those who are not familiar with his works, you may have seen him on TV in the Malaysian version of “So You Think You Can Dance?” as one of the judges).

During cocktail, we sat down on the floor surrounding the studio to watch a performance, Pallavan. The Pallavan celebrates the architectonics of Odissi, an Indian dance form, through the vehicle of the female body and spirit. Basic stances and postures of the square chowka and the tribhanga (the three bends of head, torso and hip), combine to form a dignified composite movement through a regulated rhythmic structure. Ramli gave us a brief intro on the rhythmic structures comprising the no. of beats before the performance.








(OMG! my phone is just as bad as my camera in taking video!)

The 7 dancers’ movements were so full of energy and synchronized that I was mesmerized and couldn’t pull my attention away.

After dinner (the usual Indian food fair and it was actually quite good but not the highlight of the night), we were ushered to the Amphi-Sutra. It is a hexagonal Amphi-theatre in the garden to stage performances.

Once we were all seated, Ramli again gave us a briefing on what to expect in the next performance - Kamala, a contemporary piece. This work explores the concept of devotion and piety inspired by eastern and western mythic images related to the ‘Mother Goddess’, the Madonna and Shakti. The lotus and the rose, flowers of great joy and delight, represent metaphors of auspiciousness, beauty and grace. The sole male dancer represents the male principle in his various incarnations and metaphors. Without the female principle, the male form is inert and without his ‘shakti’ or creative energy.



It was a beautiful and touching piece of work.



You can really feel the emotion or Rasa (as Ramli likes to refer to) transpiring within the group.

The night soon came to an end. Finally with the performances over, I took a closer look at the place. It truly is full of its owner's aesthetic tastes.



I love the Balinese touch of the garden.



Before leaving, we thanked Ramli for the great night and I just had to thank Boss too for his excellent choice this time around :)