Salt and Sugar

Salt and Sugar is a new dance film by award-winning choreographer and dancer Hemabharathy Palani. The project was commissioned by Fuel, developed as a live performance with acclaimed director Hetain Patel, and adapted into a film with director JJ Abraham, with original music composed by Jasmin Kent Rodgman.  

Salt and Sugar begins with a memory. A comment from her mother reveals to Hema the impossible gap between who she is and who others demand her to be, leading to a tail-spin through growing up in a society teaching that a woman should not have dark skin. Deeply personal and evocative, Hema’s choreography in Salt and Sugar combines classical Indian dance forms with contemporary movement to tell an urgent story which leads us through the psychological journey of finding the determination to redefine beauty and captures, against the epic landscapes of Bangalore, our capacity for resilience.

Salt and Sugar looks at the complexities of Indian culture through classical Indian dance, spoken word, contemporary movement and cultural references. This striking new film explores feminism, family relationships and what it means to be an Indian woman today.

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