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Social Media Star of the Week: Shobana
At age 50, the celebrated Kerala actor-dancer is using Instagram Reels to teach the basics of Bharatanatyam
During the pandemic, almost everything went online. But, for a classical dance form like Bharatanatyam, it is essential to get the basics right. So, teaching and learning it on Instagram is a herculean task!
However, within two weeks of uploading her first Reel, more than a million people had viewed renowned Kerala actor and classical dancer Shobana Chandrakumar’s video.
Irony has it
Until 2016, Shobana had no clue about the platform and it took a lot of cajoling by her students for her to create an account. She’d restrained her posts to travel pictures and dance concert images. “I feel guilty if I share a post too many because I think I’ll be popping onto everyone’s busy lives,” says the actor.
So, when did the idea to use Reels for teaching occur? “Being stuck inside the house brought a sense of weirdness. Silence was one thing that I wanted and when it actually happened, I felt terrified. As my institute shut, the course went online almost immediately. I felt good about being in touch with my students online, so I thought I could create videos to reach out to people who are interested in my dance,” says the actor.
Shobana, who debuted in the Malayalam movie industry in 1984, had been focusing on her dance performances with tours across India and the US, prior to the pandemic.
Reeling along
So, does Reels leverage her as an actor or a dancer, I question and pat comes the reply: “It’s half and half, I do shoot my practise sessions and pop it on Instagram as well as post some throwback photos from my movies.” The 50-year-old actor-dancer also replies to most of the comments on her Reels.
As for feedback or any negative comments she says: “Fortunately, I don’t think my videos have gotten any negative comments! People sometimes do leave personal comments, but that is to elicit a response from me directly... What to do,” Shobana shrugs.
Who should be the next HT Brunch Social Media Star Of The Week? Nominate using the hashtag #BrunchSocialMediaStarOTW or email htbrunch@hindustantimes.com
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From HT Brunch, January 31, 2021
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