INSIDE MAURITIUS THE ART OF DISCOVERY 52 first of the ‘dominant sentiments’ (joy, sadness, anger, etc.), expressed by the dancer. A source of pleasure and a path to knowledge, the dance is based on the notion of rasa, ‘flavour’ or ‘nectar’. It is this nectar that the dancers pass on to their audience.” Within the walls of the temple, the dancers and the statues of the gods echo each other. The stone bodies are like “living” movements in suspension. Or is it the dancers who create an animated fresco before our eyes? Davissen, the mridangamdrum player, and the singer Sivarouven begin a Carnatic rhythm, relentless and regular. The tinkling steps soon catch up and quicken the pace. The dance, caught up in this sound spiral, becomes more liberated. The moon is still pale, but already full. “I study dance to stay in contact with my culture,” Toolasee. « J’étudie la danse pour rester en contact avec ma culture », Toolasee. From left to right: Savinam (“love” in Tamil, 17, high school student), Isha (21, web and multimedia development student at the University of Mauritius), their teacher Jaykumaren, Toolasee (“flower and goddess of spirituality”, 17), Pallavi (17, high school student) and Yajna (22, Bachelor of Psychology). “I didn’t choose Bharata Natyam, it chose me,” says Yajna. De gauche à droite : Savinam (« amour » en tamoul, lycéenne, 17 ans), Isha (étudiante en Web and multimedia development à l’Université de Maurice, 21 ans), leur professeur Jaykumaren, Toolasee (« fleur et déesse de la spiritualité », 17 ans), Pallavi (lycéenne, 17 ans) et Yajna (licenciée en psychologie, 22 ans). « Je n’ai pas choisi le Bharata Natyam, c’est lui qui m’a choisie », dit Yajna.
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