Optics. Dance film by Anjana Bala

The title Optics evokes properties of light as well as perspective, as in how something is perceived, both manifest visually and metaphorically in the short dance film. Choreographer Anjana Bala joined dancers Aishani Ghosh and Adhya Shastry in a mesmerising trio that travels on a journey of relationships and place. Composer Nicole Robson with Ritesh Sunnasy on tabla contribute to the atmospheric power and distinctiveness of the film’s three sections.  Prismatic flashes open the scene, the camera pulling back to reveal three women in black kneeling on the floor bathed in the warmth of a high diagonal stage light. Directed by Wilkie Branson, the camera work moves in and through the dancers, as their arms reach out and initiate spins in place, overhead and back into unison and canon phrases. Tightly framed, their arms carve through the space around each other but don’t touch, their brief interactions set up a relationship that shifts in energy into a sense of community, of equality. Turning towards the light, their stillness is broken as they respond to an overhead circle of bright white light. Individual phrases travel towards and are repelled by an invisible force, moving away to gather energy again. The score’s dynamic intensity increases, with stronger underlying tabla rhythms supporting an instrumental overlay, as deep pliés and a dynamic flow evokes a grounding in bharatanatyam combined with contemporary dance. Bala steps into the light, emerging as a person apart, the camaraderie broken as the other two remain in the dark. Bala’s short solo is inquisitive and hesitant, the lens focusing in on rapid hand mudras to shield from the brightness. Gazing up into the light, the tension reaches a climax before fading to black. 

The image fades up to Bala transported to a wooded clearing; the sound of running water and birdsong mark the shift to nature. Narrative threads are offered, there is dirt on her body, a costume change and she is alone.  There isn’t a strong abhinaya which allows an emotional resonance to emerge, leaving interpretation open. Moving through the trees into a meadow, Bala emanates an internal strength, as the sound of a veena adds another layer of South Asian instrumentation. As the natural light shifts to dusk, glimpses of light are seen in high rise towers and building cranes in the distance. Crystals on her costume also glimmer, as Bala takes up a circular and expansive exploration of space. As in the opening, the camera dances as well, establishing an additional relationship where a feeling of instability is gradually centred.

Diverse support came from dance institutions including Akademi and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded project, Moving Online: Ontology and Ownership of Internet Dance at the Centre for Dance Research (C-DaRE), Coventry University. A version of the dance with audio description by Shivaangee Agrawal & Elaine Lillian Joseph (SoundScribe) is also available, offering an illuminating optic and intriguing metaphors.  

Watch the film here