Art

Chinese combo on city’s plate

Chetna Dua , Hindustan Times
New Delhi, February 01, 2013

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First Published: 19:04 IST(1/2/2013)
Last Updated: 01:01 IST(2/2/2013)

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Martial arts practitioners perform under overcast skies on Tiananmen Square in central Beijing, 31 May 2007, during the 2007 Harmonious China event. Thousands of children took over Beijing's Tiananmen Square, staging a mass sports and games demonstration as part of the city's effort to drum up enthusiasm for next year's Olympics ahead of International Children's Day on 01 June.

If you thought martial art is all about self-defence, here’s a reason to think again. A team of 50 professionals from China have brought a mix of martial arts and aerial ballet, titled, The Legend of Kung Fu, to India for the first time.

“This is a martial art for peace and protection. It

is completely non-violent. It makes a person stronger,” says Li Dazhong, a representative of the show.

The performance revolves around the legend of a little monk Chun Yi who learns to overcome physical and mental weakness through martial arts to emerge as the guru of Kung Fu. The show displays many exercises that are practiced in China to strengthen the body — like a young boy balancing his belly on the tip of a pointed spear, or breaking a bunch of thick wooden sticks on his head. “We can do much more with our bodies than we attempt. It is about increasing your limits,” says Dazhong.

The 90 minute show, which is set to oriental music and a fantasy sequence with traditional ballet steps, has had more than 5,000 shows across the world.
The show is being performed at Kingdom of Dreams, Gurgaon, till February 3.