This poignant film is a contemporary South Asian dance work that draws upon Indian classical rhythms, shapes, and geometries. Created by dance artist and anthropologist Anjana Bala alongside talented collaborators, the film uses optics as a metaphor for visibility, exploring how we pursue it and the emotional consequences it entails.

Set against shifting landscapes of light and the edges of visibility, this film explores our complex relationship with being seen and social worth—oscillating between competing for it and resisting it, between perfection and imperfection, between embracing dreams of recognition and discovering one’s own light.

Anjana Bala is one of 13 artists in the current cohort for the Rose Choreographic School, which is based in Sadler’s Wells East. The artists are supported over two years as they work on research projects exploring what choreography is and can be. Digital Stage will continue to share more films by the Rose Choreographic School cohort throughout the year.

Find out more about the Rose Choreographic School here.