India Post News Service
NEW JERSEY: Varsha Naik, founder and CEO of Navrang Dance Academy in New Jersey, organized her11th Ramleela show in New Jersey with Indo American Festival INC.
It all began in the year 2012, when Varsha was given the task of choreographing a short version of Ramleela in ten minutes. This was the turning point for her life. One of the coordinators and president of Indo American Festival (IAF) offered her an opportunity to choreograph and direct the award-winning show “Ramleela” for their Dussehra Festival which was started by Late Shri Mangal Gupta.
It was a challenge, which she took up as she knew she had to present the story in a way that the audience in USA could understand and enjoy. Varsha was fascinated with the entire concept of the Ramleela. For her, it was not about repeating the same Ramleela that has been done in past years, it was about creating her own way of narrating the story.
The first show had 100 participants including Indian and non-Indian artists. The concept was based on Broadway Musical. This was the first time she had choreographed a two-hour musical drama, where she had started with 10 participants and ended up creating a show with over 100 participants including dancers, actors and even child artists.
The show itself began with fifty people sitting and watching. However, as it went on, the audience began calling and texting their friends and families to come and watch. In no time, the event venue was filled with thousands of people watching and enjoying the show. Even the security guards
struggled with controlling the masses since no one was prepared for such an amazing response.
After her first successful show there was no looking back. Last year, in 2017, there were close to eighteen thousand people watching the show and this year they crossed that number too as people not only from New Jersey but from all over east-coast of US drove down to enjoy the festival and watch the show. The event is completely free of charge for the community to come and enjoy the festivities. The main attraction still is Varsha Naik’s Ramleela, the burning of the “Ravan effigy”,
a spectacular firework show, and shopping at the event.
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