If you ask me to describe performing and the arts in a few words, I would use curiosity, adventure, the feeling of fullness, and amazement. It's like food to the soul. It enriches, nourishes, and replenishes us. I have been performing in the contemporary circus since young. I was maybe sixteen or seventeen years old when I was first introduced to the art form.

Contemporary circus is a modern evolved revised version of the circus which doesn’t involve the conventional setting of wild animals doing tricks with balls and the huge circus stand. 40-50 years ago, the conventional circus was in decline. It is natural for things to evolve for the better. That’s simply how the world works, we always are in search of a better, more efficient version. In this contemporary art form, we try to weave all the elements together to narrate a story, in the hope that it sends out a message to the audience. This form of circus has more artistic creativity in it, it really adds some purpose to the art form.

I have toured all over France. I have spent some years performing in Belgium and the neighboring countries as well. Probably sometime around then I was made aware of the Indian art forms. And my curiosity to see them in the flesh dragged me here to Pondicherry. And it was absolutely worth it, the art forms were such a wondrous site to my eyes that I decided to set camp here. I have created my own group or performing company here and we try to put up performances where both of our cultures, art, and skills unite to tell stories that have been told never before.

Obviously, it has been an entirely different world here. A world that I have always been curious to explore. But however different it seems on the surface, the base foundation seems to be the same. To give you an example, the Indian belief that an artist is someone who channels the greater force to convey stories and messages is something that I resonate with as well.

( To be continued)