The Golden Sparrow 

The body’s movements are a reflection of the soul, they say. Elegance, grace and charisma define this artist. His energetic performance, positive appeal and his original Tribal Fusion dancing style have resulted in an uproar among the belly dancing crowd in the city.

Arun Bharadwaj is a pioneer belly dancer from the city who is working hard to take the dance to new levels. He focuses not just on choreography but also works towards improvising his moves and costumes. He has professionally trained in belly dancing accompanied with jazz and odissi dance style as well. He has attended many workshops from international artists and instructors named Coleena Shakti, Marwa Tuna, Kalara Daila Jansikova, and many more.

Being India’s first tribal fusion male belly dancer he has tried to fuse the dance with different art forms. “I started dancing at the age of 16 in Pathankot. I saw a male belly dancer perform on TV, and was fascinated by his moves and flexibility. I started surfing on the internet to know more about the dance and saw videos on Youtube. I tried to imitate the steps and fell in love with belly dancing,” he says. He later went to Delhi and got admission in Banjara School of Dance.

What sets him apart is his sense of music and intricate movements. Over the years, his talent and dedication has earned him a reputation as a performer, teacher and choreographer. After completing his course he came to Pune and started Tribal School of Dance to promote belly dance. But all this didn’t come easy. Initially, he faced a lot of hardships including opposition from his family. “People judge you as soon as you tell them you are a belly dancer. My family, which is otherwise very supportive and broadminded, opposed my decision to take up belly dance. They asked me to take up anything else but not this. After I came back from Delhi, they saw me perform on stage for the first time and they were stunned. They accepted that I was made to do this,” he adds.

Today he teaches American tribal style, Egyptian classical, Tribal fusion, fluid tribal style to name a few. He has participated in many reputed dance festivals like Bellywood, Jashn-e-Banjara, Neon-Hafla, etc. Apart from this, he also participated in dance reality shows like Just Dance and Aja Nachle. “When I started, I never thought about the future prospects. I simply followed my heart. People have misconceptions about a man doing belly dance. They are okay when you practice Indian classical dance. I have learned both and in these dances you have to play different roles but the process of learning is the same. Why then should we create a gender bias,” he asks.

But now he sees a change in the perception, people now see him as a performer, appreciate his dance and congratulate him. From the time when people were skeptical of the idea of a male belly dancer to a time that people are applauding him for his art, time is surely changing for good. “Now, when I upload my dance video on Youtube, I get many comments and likes. I want to grow more and inspire as many people I can. However there is a long way to go. I get many guys coming to my school to enquire, but none of them enroll for the classes. Men feel shy because of how people will perceive them. I am hoping to change that mindset one day,” he says.