This Bangalore dance school functions like a startup, but does not believe in making money

BENGALURU: Kavya Viswanathan calls her dance school a startup. It might not be a commercial venture and she might not be in it for the money. But her career, more or less, has involved working towards a vision, putting together a team, getting the product out, and, most importantly, raising capital. “In that sense, I’ve been a startup for the past decade,” said the founder of Martiya Dance Community.

Viswanathan is now embarking on her most ambitious project — a belly dance theatrical on Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland. While the production itself will revolve around the Egyptian dance form, the movements will be an amalgamation of contemporary styles, jazz, ballet, Odissi, Bharatanatyam and Flamenco Fusion. Capital for this first-of-its-kind production premiering on August 5 at ADA Rangamandira will be raised through crowdfunding.

“The budget is Rs 1.75 lakh for the final showcase but the biggest challenge is finding sponsors for such small-scale and niche works,” said Viswanathan. Artists like her trying to scale up often hit a wall with investors who resort to equating artistic value with social causes.




“It is difficult to reach out and identity funders who understand that artistic value needs backing too, even if it is in an exploratory stage where performers are not sure of where it will get them,” said Viswanathan, 34.

“Approaching arts with a commerce-driven mindset kills the idea of exploration. There needs to be a culture that invests in artistic research like one invests in scientific research,” she says.

Viswanathan’s core team of dancers for the production include eight women in their 30s. All of them are professionals who took up dance later in life to encourage self-expression and body positivity. Hence, their three-hour daily rehearsals start from 5 am. “The aim of our Alice In Wonderland production is to awaken the curious inner child that still lives in each one of us,” she said.

Viswanathan and team have designed artworks, props and collaterals for donors, apart from providing tickets to the show. The team will call the production a success even if it manages to break even. While they have raised 50% funds from 60 donors, the campaign on Wishberry will be live only for another week.

“In India, dance probably gets the lowest funding priority among art forms. Even there, classical dance is more easily funded than contemporary forms. For us, however, it is all or nothing. If crowdfunding does not happen, we will just take another loan to make this happen.”