In a candid interview with the latest dancing diva in the Indian territory, Tanya Chamoli.
Tanya Chamoli, aged 23, is a dancer on the rise. With a bachelor’s degree in English and being the Cultural President of her college, Mata Sundri (University Of Delhi), she has also managed to enhance her passion and profession for dance. She is a charismatic dancer and it definitely is a delight to watch her perform. Tanya discovered her skills at a very young age and it was easy for her to convince her parents that she was born to dance.
Her diligence has helped her winning many competitions in the Delhi Dance Circuit, scholarships and various awards for titled “best dancer“, “most creative and versatile dancer“, “best solo dancer” and many others to mention.
Q. So, you being a great dancer compels us to know more about you. Tell us something about yourself.
I am a kind of person who, if once decides to do something, makes sure that it is done!I am a person coming from a middle class family, but with BIG DREAMS. People usually judge me from my looks, and think of me as a person with a lot of attitude and ego!! Whereas I am a very fun person to be with.
I love partying, eating, travelling, singing, playing drums and staying happy and positive all the times. I don’t prefer teaching, and rather enjoy choreographing and performing. I don’t want to become another teacher in the Indian Dance Community, but rather aim for something really different.
Q. How and when did you discover the dancer in you?
I was a 9 year old kid when my mom enrolled me to classical vocal and instrumental classes. Right after my vocal class used to be Kathak classes. Being a stubborn child, I fought with my parents that I will attend music classes only if they let me take the dance classes as well. My parents had no choice but to agree with me. Such a rebel I was!!! That is how I started dancing. I learnt Kathak and other folk dance forms for 8 years, and then gained interest in the Western Dance forms, and joined Danceworx for further training. As soon as I was in college, I knew I had to make a career in the same field and here I am, after being trained from various places.
Q. When was it that you decided to transform your passion to profession?
I always knew I wanted to dance. But as every parent in India considers Art as an insecure profession, even my parents were against me pursuing dance as a career, and encouraged me to apply for a govt. job and keep dancing as a hobby. After my 2nd year examinations, during the break, I did a musical with Blank Delhi Productions in association with Urshilla Dance Company. Ms. Bhavini Misra, the director of the company saw a fire in me and insisted me to take it up as a career. I was given the role of famous celebrity in the musical, and had a super sexy character to play which was my style. I invited my parents there for the first time to watch the show and they liked it, and then and there they were convinced that I was born to dance.
Q.Who has been your true inspiration leading you up to here?
No one has been my particular inspiration as such. I have been taking inspirations from any and every where possible. Dancers from Millenium, ML, Pop Stars like Michael Jackson, Beyonce, everyone has been inspiring me. Even the nature, the trees, the dogs, water bodies have had a major role to play in my life.
Q. Dance is no doubt an unconventional profession to make your career in. What all hurdles did you have to go through in this journey?
Yes, dance is an unconventional profession to make your career in, but what career opportunity in today’s world is a conventional one?
Even white collared jobs are unconventional, maybe not as much as dancing is, but yes, insecure somehow or the other way !
Honestly, I was not releasing the video on Cheap Thrills as I believed I could have performed much better. That was a low phase of my life, and I was almost about to quit it. But I still used to keep trying and trying and doing something, in belief that fierce Tanya Chamoli will be back again. Another hurdle that I faced was, that everyone wants a dancer or any other artist to perform but do not want to pay them back. But then there are few dancers, who agree to such terms and create a bad market!!
Q. Apart from dancing being your strong point, what other things fascinate you?
I have always wanted to be a pop star, who sings, makes her own songs, choreograph and direct them. And then perform in it as well! I know this is too much, but is my dream anyway.
I do sing, play synthesizer and drums though!! And soon shall start working on making covers and dancing on them!
Q. What according to you has been your greatest accomplishment?
My first greatest accomplishment was when Ashley Lobo called me personally when I was in school, and told me I should never stop dancing. Then in my final year at college, I won Vfest, and was also given the award for best female dancer of DU .
Soon after graduating, I was hired as a choreographer to a college’s team!! This was something huge for me. After college, I also won full scholarship to Yanish Marshall’s classes in India.
I think the greatest accomplishment was when Sean Paul and Ashton Kutcher shared my video. That was indeed a splendid moment for me.
Also read “Proneeta Swargiary : a phenomenal dancer and the winner of ‘Dance India Dance’ Season 5“
Q. Your “Cheap Thrills” choreo was a big hit. How did it feel seeing other person learning and dancing to your choreo?
Haha!! It was fun! Initially when the video was gaining popularity, I was just okay, and not super excited or happy as such! But when Sean Paul himself shared my video, I was on cloud 9! And then one friend told me even Ashton Kutcher and Karmin had shared my video!! That is when I had accomplished something big! People started calling me the “Cheap Thrills” girl and it made me happy at the same time.
Q. Would you want to pass on any message to the aspiring fellow dancers out there?
To all the dancers out there, I would just say believe in yourself, and keep following you dreams. Don’t give up easily, as the journey of an artist is full of hardships and ups and downs. But it is the will power which determines the winner. People in this world cannot see one grow and would do anything to pull you down, but it is in your hands how you handle it. Take it positively and fight back, or let them win’! Coz’ if you don’t have haters, you are not growing!!!
