Challenging content: making ‘stairways to happiness’ through dance for the child

This paper looks critically at the many ways in which inappropriate content enters the realm of dance for the child in India, ranging from folk, classical and reality show dancing on TV. It attempts of interrogate the deep social historical and religious roots of the problem and the interstices by which such maleficence persists unchallenged, leaving the many possibilities of using dance to kindle the imagination of the child and unlock the bigger potential of childhood. The paper concludes by citing two successful examples of attempts at creating child friendly Indian dance material including one in the diaspora. It also highlights the recent changes in the National Education Policy, that have foregrounded the arts making them at par with other privileged subjects, and seeing in this opportunity a chance to catalyse the creation of an age appropriate and child friendly repertoire