One of the earliest friends I made in the Salsa circle was Yogesh, I know him as a die hard Salsa aficionado and inspiring teacher & passionate dancer of Salsa.He is a constant reminder to me how life should be easy without any hangups, his dance personifies this attitude, check out this interview with Yogesh, known as YK in the Salsa circle, who i believe is one of the earliest Salsa dancers the city has seen.
How and when did you get introduced to Salsa? Who were your teachers who helped you hone your dancing Skills?
I was studying in a small university town- iowa city, USA -where i went our dancing and saw this soulful dance which looked like jiving. Though I managed to pick up the steps, i realised that i was quite offbeat. I resolved to learn the dance asap. We had a student who was conducting salsa workshops in the university and I learnt my basics from him- Modei – a mix of Latin and African parents. Hanging out at the local salsa pubs with Latin students helped me add finesse and passion to the steps. Later on i went to learn other forms of Latin ballroom in Washington DC from world champions- Maria and Martin- and was an instructor in their studio there.
What difference has Salsa made to your life?
Besides making me a more social person Salsa has immersed me in a new culture- that of Latin Americans. This dance has helped me keep fit- physically and mentally. It has won me many friends around the world . I have also been able to help absolute newcomers to learn dancing and this has boosted the confidence of many aspiring salseros. I also learnt Spanish to understand Salsa better.
My students have varied from teenagers to those leading a busy corporate life to senior citizens. It gives me immense pleasure to see someone happy while dancing. And of course salsa has given me an alternate profession- Two Left Feet – a dance group that we started to teach dancing to people who are short of time and want to learn it in a fun and fast manner.
How long have you been dancing Salsa? which is you “other” favourite Latin dance?
Its been 12 years since I first danced salsa. After that it has literally been a way of life. Brazilian Samba and Argentine tango are my other favorite Latin dances. The fun and footloose Samba is exactly opposite to the passionate and disciplined Tango.. yet they mesmerise the soul and body alike.
What do you think about the Salsa Parties happening in Mumbai?
It is heartening to see more salsa parties in Mumbai after I first started dancing with Devika Shahani at Liquid Lounge in 2002. Now there are atleast 4-5 places in a week to dance salsa. I look forward to seeing more live music salsa parties and maybe open air parties too.
How many Salsa congresses in India and around the world have you attended?
I have attended one each in Bangalore and Bombay.One of the first things that I do when i travel is to go dancing at a salsa club. i have danced in more than 25 cities across more than 15 countries in the world. I enjoyed the Salsa congress the most in Amsterdam and Berlin.
How does your family react to your passion for Salsa? Do they support you?
When I first started to dance, it was an uphill task convincing my parents as the perception of the dance was very negative in India. Over the years they have seen me perform and the dance has also received rave reviews. Now they are proud to inform people about my passion for dancing.
Be a part of the movement – Let’s bring salsa to the big screen. It’s time to show the world what we all love and enjoy.
The filmmakers of MANO are passionate about salsa and the social dance movement that has evolved on a global level. Salsa is a rich and soulful music that is uniting people of all races, color and creed worldwide, however it yet has been given credible recognition on the big screen. We produced MANO, the 24 minute salsa dance drama with the plan to raise interest and support for the full length film The Spanish Harlem Project, now in pre-production. Every genre of dance has had it’s 2 hours of fame, now it’s our turn.
We are raising awareness and resources by making the Award-Winning Short Film available for the first time to the public for a nominal donation – a portion will go into the budget we are raising for the full length feature film; and a portion for the non-for profitBaile de los Niños to further increase awareness for young dancers around the world.
MANO, written and directed by Anthony Nardolillo stars Laz Alonso(Avatar – head warrior of Navi tribe, Fast & the Furious, Stomp the Yard),Lee T. Young (Friday Night Lights, Hills Have Eyes 2, Flash Forward), Giancarlo Esposito (Do the Right Thing, Usual Suspects) and introducing Anthony Nardolillo, Yesenia Adame, Cristian Oviedo and Alfredo de La Fe. MANO also features Magna Gopal, Kimberli Flores, Gordon Neil and Esti Ashkenazi and 20
other renowned dancers.
The film is available in English, Spanish and Italian.
Original music by Alfredo de La Fe and New
Swing Sextet.
Have you just started learning how to Salsa dance? If so, you know that learning new steps and patterns can often times be challenging, not to mention having to pay attention to the complex rhythms of a fast tempo Salsa song. We understand that dancing to smooth, slow-tempo music maximizes your ability to focus not only on the rhythm, but on your steps and your partner as well- it allows you to enjoy the dance! The songs listed on the right are some of our favorite slow tempo songs because they are fun and easy to dance to. If you’re a beginner Salsa dancer, we recommend that you make them part of your Salsa music collection and that you practice dancing to them! Have fun!
I have launched 2 more websites one is a all India Salsa Directory http://salsaindia.tel/ and the other is probably India first social networking website exclusively for Salsa lovers in mumbai and around the country.Check out http://www.mumbaisalsa.me/
MUMBAISALSA.ME is a social networking website, much like facebook but only for people who are Salsa lovers. Most of the time we dont learn dance cause our freinds are not interested. So this is site where you can reach out to other Salsa lovers. You can upload pictures, blog about your salsa experience, without getting in to messy affair of setting up a blog, you can even upload videos and ofcourse chat. So go ahead create a account here, and find your dream Salsa partner.
Salsa India Directory is a effort to bring all the information about Salsa specialist/instructors under a common website. Many times when you travel to other cities you want to go dancing, this website can be very helpful where you can check the particular instructor and ask him about the Salsa party in the particular city.This website is a mobile friendly site and you can straight away dial a number if you are using a smart phone or a wap browser.
Finally guys I need more enthusiasm and ideas to take the salsa dancing to many more clubs.Give me some!
Yesterday I had been to Zenzi Mills, for the Pre-New Years Bash. The party was at the Ist floor instead of the the usual ground floor, that meant a large place to dance and place for beginners like me to get indulged and practice my moves.
It was a great party, the crowd usually coming in very late and there wasn’t much of a forum for the tango lessons as I was told. But slowly and surely the crowd trickled in and it was getting to one of the best parties I attended especially because of the number of new comers.
Except for a few downers, like a bunch of Australian women out there, who were indulging this young unruly kid who was buying them free drinks.I must commend Santosh the Instructor from Salsa India for doing his job so well, he kept a very kool head and asked the guy to take the walk with the Australian women who he was trying to buy out.
I can understand a complete newcomer to the Salsa scene misbehaving, but what I cannot understand is regulars to the Salsa party who misbehave. I was particularly shocked to see a guy who is almost at all the Salsa Parties,forcing a kiss on a girl, after dancing K-style bachata on the dance floor. After being reprimanded, he explains, this is how things work and beginners should know.
As per the usual customs of social dancing, girls generally don’t refuse anyone for a dance, and if that is taken as a consent to molest her, I can predict that Salsa dancing as a social activity in clubs would die a premature death,and we would be restricted to hold dance events in school halls, where the deadline would be 9pm.
what do you ladies think? If any of you feel you have been abused in the name of power or dance, and want to warn these predators, write to me at manoj@mumbaisalsa.info
P.S For people who are wondering what’s K-Style Bachata is, “its a sensual form of dance, where the guys right leg are essentially(well most of the time) between the girls legs” still don’t get it, check out kaytee dancing in this video
I was one of the priviledged guests to attend the Christmas Ballroom Bash organiserd by Conrad Coelho I reached at the close of the foxtrot workshop. Loved the smooth movement of foxtrot and the elegance displayed when Conrad and Arpita gave us a demo.
I like to discover new dance schools, and Conrad school seems quite promising with the display of performances and the party which was attended with all people suited for the occasion.This Party was at a school Hall in Vileparle.
Here are some pics of the events along with the video.
Vanessa and I will be selecting students in Mumbai for our new Bachata Performance Group that starts from the 8th of Jan. Every Friday 8 to 10pm.
This will be a 1 month Choreography class where in students will get to perform at the 1st Bachata Festival in India which will be held in Mumbai on the 13th & 14th Feb. 2010.
Students interested in this Performance Batch can give your name and number to our Operations Manager Ms. Mary and book your seats. Only limited for few couples so please give your names fast.
You can call Mary directly at +97697- SALSA (72572) or email us at info@salsa-india.com
It been sometime and this wonderful group hasnt seen any activity at all. My astrologer has predicted that this year would be good for me “salsa dancing wise”. I would be finally be able to devote more time to dancing/ learning, and would finally cross the “level 1″ of Salsa.
I would be mailing you one newsletter a month between 20/25th of every month, to keep you informed on the various events,classes.workshops and maybe gossips??? in the Salsa circuit in mumbai.
( Please don’t blame me if I am unable to do so, as you know this is not a paying proposition for me yet. But like so many other people who like to see/make people dance, I also would like to contribute.
)
YES, I would be sending only one email a month , so that i dont become a pest spammer on your list, and as a asst Organizer of this group, I would request you to keep your activity on the message board very relevant end meaningful.
Check out these interviews of 2 of the most admired and loved dancers in the circuit.
1. You vividly remember your first experience with salsa and the date it happened. 2. You never listen to the radio anymore because all you listen to are salsa cds/cassettes. 3. Salsa lessons/club cover fees are now a permanent part of your monthly expenses. 4. You say you are going shopping for a new business outfit, but you are secretly salsa shopping. 5. Your boyfriend/girlfriend does not understand the "strictly platonic" relationship you have with your salsa partner because you simply cannot wait until you practice with him/her again. 6. You watch anything that deals with body movement, (i.e. karate, gymnastics, figure skating, ballet) because you are trying to devise a new salsa move. 7. Everything you do leads back to salsa.
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