Dance is an art in which human movement becomes the medium for sensing, understanding and communicating ideas and feelings.
There is a unique language in dance. In this world only a few have excelled in the dancing field.
Veteran dancer Chandana Wickramasinghe is such a rare kind of artiste who belongs to the calibre of the universal dancers.
Devangi Wickramasinghe,being the daughter of the dancing legend Chandana Wickramasinghe is blessed with her father’s creativity and a profound knowledge in the IT field. Having completed her degree in Australia, she holds an honours degree in Cyber Security from the Western Sydney University.
Born in 2000, she had her education at Lyceum International School, Panadura. Devangi hails from an artistic family. Her mother, Dilhani Wickramasinghe was attached to the ‘Dinamina’ newspaper. To my question about her school life, she began to awaken a strand of memories one by one.
“I had my education at Lyceum International College. Those days I was a very shy person. Neither did I talk with others and play with others. But now I have overcome my shyness because I had to continue my studies in Australia. I had two friends in the university. One is from Sri Lanka and the other from India. We ate together, played together and studied together. We were like a team. It was a wonderful memory in my university life in Australia. We had many resources available. We had to do our studies online due to Covid-19.”
It would not be correct to say that Devangi does not have an enthusiasm in dancing because she studied dancing under her father’s guidance.
“After completing my A/Ls I began to study dancing as a pastime. I participated in dance shows as well. But I am not a professional dancer. It is a subject with a vast range that we have to study before entering the field,” she said.
Speaking of her future plans, she said she plans to move forward in the IT field. “I specialised in Cyber Security at the university. But we cannot find opportunities in the country for my subject. That is a big problem.”
University life
University life is a wonderful memory that we love to reminisce about forever. The writer asked her about her university life.
“We had enough freedom in the university. Lecturers are friendly and interactive. What I noticed is the fact that Australians have cultivated their self-discipline. Self-discipline is a must. In our country most boys can be seen whistling at girls in short dresses. I did not witness such incidents in Australia. We should have a good mentality as well,” she said.
Speaking of self-discipline, it enables you to make good decisions until you accomplish them. In order to reach your goals, a good measure of discipline is most helpful. It imparts you the ability to thrive in your field.
Moreover, it is a power that helps you stay motivated. If you wish to have resolution, persistence, single-mindedness and staying power, you need to develop self-discipline. If you fail to cultivate self-discipline, you will be acting rashly and impulsively. That is why you should cultivate your self-discipline to break bad habits.
As noted by Devangi, Australians followed the health guidelines to the letter without breaking rules. They have imposed lock-downs and travel restrictions in several places for months. But no one expressed reluctance to abide by the rules.
Covid-19
We know that Covid-19 robbed important things from our lives, especially our memories. Our parents have always been there along the way to lead us in the right direction. Needless to say that parents want their children to achieve the pinnacle of education and that they have sky-high dreams about their children.
The best gift which children can give their parents is the success in their studies. But unfortunately, most parents could not see their children’s graduation ceremonies with their own eyes due to Covid-19.
“Sadly, my parents could not attend my graduation ceremony due to Covid-19. It was a tearful memory in my university life,” Devangi lamented.
The present situation
There is a saying “Every dark cloud has a silver lining”. But some incidents have tempted us to say that “Every silver lining has a dark cloud.”
It is true that reality programs generates stars. But sadly those who gain fame through reality programs have started to conduct dancing classes.
Questions arise as to whether they have a professional knowledge or a background in the field to conduct classes. “At present many styles have emerged in Sri Lanka. I don’t say that it is bad. It is a positive trend. We can find a good market for dancers. But unfortunately, those who complete only the second or the third rounds at reality shows have started to conduct classes.
“They can attract students very easily because of their fame. But the question is that they don’t have good knowledge,” she stressed.
It is evident that those responsible should ensure the standard of such classes and schools for dancing. Otherwise, even our talented youth will go astray as a result of the misguidance of unqualified instructors.
Speaking of her future plans, Devangi hopes to release a music video. It is no exaggeration to say that it will be an amazing experience for all. “This is my maiden music video. I hope that everyone will enjoy this,” she said.
Message
“I am not a professional dancer. But I can say that if you have an idea of entering the field of dancing. You should have good knowledge. This is a vast subject with a long history. So how can you survive in this field without knowledge? Therefore, first you have to study it and then you can do something in this field,” she said. All in all, we can hope that talented artistes with multiple skills and talents will embellish our country.
