A tough workout via Bollywood
Hemalayaa has carved out a fitness niche as unusual as her name. Drawing on her Indian roots, the Canadian-born yoga and dance instructor creates workout routines that blend aerobic and sensual dance with the music and melodramatic sensibilities of Bollywood -- a.k.a. Hindustani cinema. The result: instructional DVDs with a mind-body approach and a hint of camp. She conducts classes and workshops in Los Angeles and elsewhere and has released six fitness DVDs, including “Dance of the Kama Sutra,” “The Bollywood Dance Workout” and her newest, “Bollywood Burn,” which was released in January.
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How is Bollywood dancing different from the traditional Hindu dancing?
Bollywood dance is an eclectic mix of many different styles. It originated with classical Indian dance but then became more modern, fun and playful. Now, along with some classical elements, it’s a mix of jazz, hip-hop and Bhangra. Bhangra is what I call the “Indian hip-hop.” It is performed with Hindi music mostly, from Bollywood films. The music is beautiful and sensual.
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What is the essence of Bollywood dance?
Bollywood dance is very charismatic, sensual, vibrant, outgoing. You’re not very shy or, if you are shy, you are playing shy. It’s very dramatic, you’re very much acting it out. You know, when we were little kids it was all about exaggerating things. Bollywood is all about being over the top.
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Your DVD “Dance of the Kama Sutra” is named for the ancient Indian text on sexuality. Why the Kama Sutra?
They are texts on love, and that’s what the DVD is about -- finding that sensual dance to love ourselves. You can do the dance for others, your beloved, your friend, lover, whoever or God. And it’s about just being a sensual being, to love oneself fully and to not be ashamed or guilty for dancing sensually. The Kama Sutra is about cultivating sensuality, cultivating sexuality, cultivating love. That’s what this dance is about. Finding the sensual dance within us. We start with the meditation. We start with finding what’s important to us. What are our desires? We find that in the heart, and from there we dance.
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You were trained in classical Indian dance. Are there any common misperceptions about this type of dance?
People have no idea how hard classical Indian dance is. They might just think, ‘Oh, they look so pretty wearing these beautiful costumes and all the jewelry.’ But it’s one of the hardest things I’ve ever tried in my entire life. In fact, just to clarify, I am not trained in classical Indian dance; I’m in training, and I will be in training for the rest of my life. It is my practice, just like a martial art is for some people. It is something I’ve come to terms with -- that I will never master it in my lifetime.
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What makes it so difficult?
The positions and the movements are so precise, it’s almost mathematical. We stamp the feet on Mother Earth, and it’s a rhythmic stamp. And then there are all the positions. We never straighten our legs out, so everything is squatting, and the torso is moving separately. The hips never move, the feet stamp, the torso moves, the head moves, the eyes move, and everything is precise. And the hands, everything is aligned up. It’s the most beautiful dance, and it looks so easy because of the facial expressions. Through all the pain of it, we have these soft faces and these meditative eyes. It looks like it’s the easiest thing, and it is the hardest thing. I’ve done martial arts and I’ve done a lot of asana practice, and this is definitely the physically hardest thing I’ve ever done.
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