CHARMIS PATEL: LETTING LOOSE

LETTING LOOSE PATEL’S MODERN TAKE ON BOLLYWOOD

When most people think of senior Charmis Patel, they think of the straight-A student at the top of the graduating class. But many were surprised to see her let loose during Mr. Royal as she put a hiphop twist to traditional Indian dance moves. Between juggling many AP courses, being an active member of National Honor Society, Math Team, World Connections Club and Key Club, as well as formerly partaking in an internship with Indiana Senator Braun, many assumed that Patel has little time for leisurely activities. What many students fail to see is Patel’s devoted time in Bollywood dance. “People say ‘you never hang out with your friends over the weekend’,” Patel said. “Really I just don’t have the time to do so because when I do have time, I would rather spend it dancing.” Getting her bearings in dance at a young age, most of Patel’s experience in Bollywood dancing came from performing at the wedding receptions of relatives. Her official training began in Indianapolis at the Ayra Academy, where she enrolled in Bollywood classes. From there, Patel became more involved in the dance style as she improved in the skill that came with Bollywood dancing.

“I have pursued it competitively a couple of times,” Patel said. “You can’t really find a lot of Bollywood classical dance competitions in the US as you could in India.” Prior to her Mr. Royal performance, Patel had only preformed publicly a couple of times, including a sixth-grade talent show and various World Connections Club International Nights, where a variety of performances are shown to represent different worldly customs, in this case Classical Indian dance. “A lot of people come and support multiple cultures at International Night,” Patel said. “[At performances] it’s nice to have an audience that doesn’t quite understand the music, but gets the beat and claps along with it.” Though Patel had only performed a limited amount of times, Bollywood dance is a part of Patel’s daily routine, as she aims to fit in at least an hour of aerobic dancing every day. The upbeat pace and intricate steps make Bollywood dance a suffice choice in how Patel spends her free time away from school. “I started doing it on a daily basis freshman year because I realized fitness was really important along with your academics and mental health,” Patel said. “I do it for fun mainly.” Some saw Patel’s decision to perform at Mr. Royal to be an impromptu action, but Patel herself believed there was no better time to show her dancing than during her senior year. Though the majority of Patel’s Bollywood dancing came from more traditional and cultural techniques, the tone of Mr. Royal, as seems to most as a lighthearted event, led Patel to change her traditional routines into ones that included hip-hop dance and songs by Rihanna. “Mr Royal is an event that is not necessarily traditional,” Patel said. “I took a little bit more of a modern version of Bollywood and did more of a BollyFusion form of dancing.” Patel was amazed with the support of the Mr. Royal audience as they became ecstatic before she arrived on stage. “I honestly didn’t expect the amount of support I got,” Patel said. “A lot of the people who go to Mr. Royal are there to see the [contestants] and to see the funny acts, not necessarily for the outside ones.”

However, Patel was proven wrong as her Bolly-Fusion dance performance received positive responses from the crowd. “That performance went as best as it could have gone,” Patel said. “When I got on stage right before I started my performance and people were chanting my name, that was honestly the best audience I have ever had in my life.” Many students were surprised to see Charmis Patel appear on the Mr. Royal stage Jan 22, but Patel showed HSE that she is more than her mind and kind heart. Any HSE student can show their hidden talents and bring more to the diversity of HSE. Story by Lauren Riina.