Note: I had the pleasure of attending Swathi Maddula's Arangetram. She did a sincere job. The repertoire was a difficult one and she had worked hard to perfect it. One could tell that she loved the art form. Over 350 people attended the Arangetram. Swathi shares her Arangetram experience with Lokvani. - Ranjani Saigal, Lokvani

I have been learning Bharatanatyam since I was 6 years old. Ever since then I have loved Indian music, dance, art, and culture. Bharatanatyam is one of the most ancient dance styles in the world. It is considered unique in having unbroken tradition for almost 2000 years. This form of dance is based on 3 pillars: Nritta (pure dance) Nrithya (interpretational dance), and Natya (expressive dance). Bharatanatyam is an extremely precise, dynamic and earthly dance style involving intricate footwork, hand gestures and facial expressions with themes depicting stories from epics and mythology.

There are many levels one can participate in Bharatanatyam, the highest of which is Arangetram. An Arangetram is the debut performance of a Bharatanatyam student. The word Arangetram literally means ascending the stage. This program usually occurs on an auspicious day. This dance performance is dedicated to the cosmic dancer, Lord Nataraja, the teacher, and the well wishers. I recently performed my Arangetram on October 12.

In my program, I performed eleven dances. There were a variety of pieces. Some exhibited complete Nritta; others exhibited complete Natya, while furthermore, others exhibited both. I enjoyed performing all of the dances. They brought out my personality. The entire process of an Arangetram including the process is sincerely worth it. My practices for the Arangetram varied as time briskly passed. At first, I was attending classes one day every week. Soon, my class times changed to twice a week. About a month before the Arangetram I began to attend classes everyday. When school started, I went to dance classes before my classes were in process.

During the last week of my Arangetram preparation, I was working with the professional musicians who traveled from India to play for various events in America. They made a huge difference in the actual process of getting all of the dances in tune. They greatly contributed and I truly appreciate it.

On the day of my Arangetram, it took me a little while to actually realize and take in that then day had come. I was somewhat astonished because the day came so quickly. Although I was not nervous I was anticipating what was to come. I enjoyed every bit of it. When the program was over, I was in relief for a split second and then I became slightly unhappy. It hit me that my Arangetram was over. The practice, the work, the dance, was over. At that point I sincerely felt like crying. I missed the preparation and still to this day, I miss the work and the dance.

My only advice to those who are going to perform their Arangetram or any other show is to live it up everyday. Enjoy every moment, because when your heart knows you are having fun, it all goes by so fast. Hold on to every moment.

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