Your work sounds very exciting and is extremely necessary. I wholeheartedly support the use of alternative forms of therapy which incorporate creative modes of expression. It is also highly commendable that your process of rehabilitation includes providing work options in this field itself.
Wishing you all the best in your endeavours --
Shuktara Lal
We have newly heard about your work in the US and its important impact on your former students who are now your colleagues and fellow teachers! What an inspirational achievement for all of you. We would be interested to find ways to bring your pioneering methods to our educational and healing institutions too. Your efforts to end slavery and heal its survivors is commendable.
I am so impressed with the work you do especially for youth. You have created a new and useful form of expression for vulnerable populations to heal and transform with joy. This is a rare gift for the communities you serve and an inspiration for us here in my country too. Persons whose bodies were abused can return to the body, the place of injury, and heal from there. It makes so much sense. I was very impressed with your groups work in Kolkata and the areas around the city. I saw your group's work with platform children, abused girls, and migrant workers. Not only have you found a way to heal, unique in itself, but you have an organizational skill, management skill, financial skill, whatever that piece is, so that you can run an organization well and handle these administrative issues with skill.
You have also found ways to keep expanding your work and now have entered into government services, I understand. I offer you whatever I can, your work is so valuable for young people.
What is it you need for your next stages of growth and to continue where you are now? What are your dreams for the future? How can we help?
Best wishes, Bobbi Ausubel
Former Chairperson, Boston Conservatory Division of Theater
I feel virtually the same way you do. And I'm also highly interested in your future plans and how to get involved myself. This could really be the start of something big!
Meh, things always seem bigger than they are when it's just getting started. However big you feel it will be when starting off, cut it in half and that's about how big it will be in reality.
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This is a tremendous Job you done. You create the alternative job option for the survivors whom people look at condescendingly. Today they are your organaisational staff and work as a trainer. I respect all of you.
I am very interested in the use of bodily exercise, sports and movement in the field of social transformation and peace building, since I am currently involved in university projects around this field at the Free University´s Institute for Sport and Integrative Education. I realize that DMT is a psychological tool as much as a sport-related activity, but anyway, I´d like to point you to the recent "Sport for a better world" competition here on cm, which featured quite a lot of projects from India, and some on sport and social transformation you might find interesting. Here are a few places to start with, though you will find more.
Soccer Camps for India´s Dalits
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/2566
Hoops for Help (Basketball):
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4340
Dream Football Program
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4446
Dancing Shantytowns in Morocco
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4378
Get Up and Groove (UK)
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/3372
In regard to your project and my interests, I´d like to ask you about your theory of change in this field. What is it about sport and physcial acitivity, you think, that has an impact on people and do these contribute to social change? And how can one best use these effects in an organized way? It´s a big question, I know, but I´d be very interested to hear your thoughts.
Best,
Jasper
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Jasper Nicolaisen
Free University Berlin
University Challenge
Thank you for the information on sports and social transformation.
In response to your question, movement gives liberation in life, and from this liberation you gain the freedom to live a more dynamic and fulfilling life, which ultimately provides a medium for change. Without movement life is stagnant.
One theory of change- how to organize the effects of movement:
Life is a journey or a process which begins from the body in action. This establishes relationships with the surrounding world and gives an individual space to every human being. This leads to the flow of energy which instigates one to communicate and connect with oneself and with the world. This helps to develop the dynamics of life.
I hope this helps you and good luck in all of your future endeavors!
Sohini has done a marvelous job to develop the utilization of Dance Movement Therapy (DMT). Her students are at first timid, nervous, and detached from their bodies. In fact, that's a common condition amongst sexually exploited youth - to disassociate one's body from one's soul in order to justify and cope with the abuse. But through Sohini's program, the youth are able to reconnect body and soul, gaining confidence in themselves and taking control over their lives. It's a beautiful transformation and it's truly an honor to have seen several of the performances!
Dance is such a powerful method of expression; it is great that you have been able to find a way to combine it with healing. You talked about one of your barriers to achieving your impact is that some parents in the small villages are hesitant about allowing their children attend DMT sessions; I was just curious, what is the main reason for this?
I went on to your website and was reading some of the success stories and it was very moving! I am a strong believer in organic medicine such as dance and music for healing. Mitali’s situation is a great example of what the movement of dance can do for somebody.
The way you have also empowered these women by training some of them to be DMT trainers is also commendable. Attitude and image are two things that any woman struggles with, so I can only imagine what that must be like for women who have been subjected to the trafficking culture. You are giving these women tools that are irreplaceable. I wish you the best of luck on your endeavors and breaking down your financial barriers while you continue to save lives through dance!!
Thank you so much for your comment! In response to your question about why some parents in small villages are hesitant about allowing their children to participate in our DMT classes: One reason is that they are extremely poor, their education and literacy level is very low ( sometimes nill), and they have no access to any outside information. Therefore they have not been exposed to different forms of culture and dance has a negative connotation, as they are mostly familiar with dance in cheap Bollywood films. When we start the DMT process in the community, it takes a long time to motivate and mobilize the community to participate. Once they start noticing the effects of DMT on their children, they are very happy and appreciative to have us working in their community.
I have been fortunate to see Sanved performances including a recent performance in Calcutta on International Dance Day. As Sanved works with some of the same partners we work with (Sanlaap, Apne Aap, ABWU) I have met several of the young women that have moved on to be trainers.
This is a great program that does beautiful work.
----------
John Berger
The Emancipation Network
http://www.madebysurvivors.com/
Your work sounds very exciting and is extremely necessary. I wholeheartedly support the use of alternative forms of therapy which incorporate creative modes of expression. It is also highly commendable that your process of rehabilitation includes providing work options in this field itself.
Wishing you all the best in your endeavours --
Shuktara Lal
Hello Sohini,
We have newly heard about your work in the US and its important impact on your former students who are now your colleagues and fellow teachers! What an inspirational achievement for all of you. We would be interested to find ways to bring your pioneering methods to our educational and healing institutions too. Your efforts to end slavery and heal its survivors is commendable.
Dr. Cecelia Wambach
Hello Sohini,
I am so impressed with the work you do especially for youth. You have created a new and useful form of expression for vulnerable populations to heal and transform with joy. This is a rare gift for the communities you serve and an inspiration for us here in my country too. Persons whose bodies were abused can return to the body, the place of injury, and heal from there. It makes so much sense. I was very impressed with your groups work in Kolkata and the areas around the city. I saw your group's work with platform children, abused girls, and migrant workers. Not only have you found a way to heal, unique in itself, but you have an organizational skill, management skill, financial skill, whatever that piece is, so that you can run an organization well and handle these administrative issues with skill.
You have also found ways to keep expanding your work and now have entered into government services, I understand. I offer you whatever I can, your work is so valuable for young people.
What is it you need for your next stages of growth and to continue where you are now? What are your dreams for the future? How can we help?
Best wishes, Bobbi Ausubel
Former Chairperson, Boston Conservatory Division of Theater
I feel virtually the same way you do. And I'm also highly interested in your future plans and how to get involved myself. This could really be the start of something big!
----------------------------------
Email - tonyjlabs[at]gmail.com
AIM - dolphinlabs
Yahoo - tonyjohansen1980
Free Petition
Meh, things always seem bigger than they are when it's just getting started. However big you feel it will be when starting off, cut it in half and that's about how big it will be in reality.
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Ajax Upload Script
This is a tremendous Job you done. You create the alternative job option for the survivors whom people look at condescendingly. Today they are your organaisational staff and work as a trainer. I respect all of you.
Regards
Srabani
Sohini is great in Kolkata . She is so dedicated in her work that she eats away bondage & dreams harmony.
Falguni Seth
www.indianfloralart.blogspot.com
Hi Sohini,
I am very interested in the use of bodily exercise, sports and movement in the field of social transformation and peace building, since I am currently involved in university projects around this field at the Free University´s Institute for Sport and Integrative Education. I realize that DMT is a psychological tool as much as a sport-related activity, but anyway, I´d like to point you to the recent "Sport for a better world" competition here on cm, which featured quite a lot of projects from India, and some on sport and social transformation you might find interesting. Here are a few places to start with, though you will find more.
Soccer Camps for India´s Dalits
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/2566
Hoops for Help (Basketball):
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4340
Dream Football Program
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4446
Dancing Shantytowns in Morocco
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/4378
Get Up and Groove (UK)
http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/node/3372
In regard to your project and my interests, I´d like to ask you about your theory of change in this field. What is it about sport and physcial acitivity, you think, that has an impact on people and do these contribute to social change? And how can one best use these effects in an organized way? It´s a big question, I know, but I´d be very interested to hear your thoughts.
Best,
Jasper
----------
Jasper Nicolaisen
Free University Berlin
University Challenge
Dear Jasper,
Thank you for the information on sports and social transformation.
In response to your question, movement gives liberation in life, and from this liberation you gain the freedom to live a more dynamic and fulfilling life, which ultimately provides a medium for change. Without movement life is stagnant.
One theory of change- how to organize the effects of movement:
Life is a journey or a process which begins from the body in action. This establishes relationships with the surrounding world and gives an individual space to every human being. This leads to the flow of energy which instigates one to communicate and connect with oneself and with the world. This helps to develop the dynamics of life.
I hope this helps you and good luck in all of your future endeavors!
Best,
Sohini Chakraborty
Sohini has done a marvelous job to develop the utilization of Dance Movement Therapy (DMT). Her students are at first timid, nervous, and detached from their bodies. In fact, that's a common condition amongst sexually exploited youth - to disassociate one's body from one's soul in order to justify and cope with the abuse. But through Sohini's program, the youth are able to reconnect body and soul, gaining confidence in themselves and taking control over their lives. It's a beautiful transformation and it's truly an honor to have seen several of the performances!
Thank you for your lovely comment and support!
Dance is such a powerful method of expression; it is great that you have been able to find a way to combine it with healing. You talked about one of your barriers to achieving your impact is that some parents in the small villages are hesitant about allowing their children attend DMT sessions; I was just curious, what is the main reason for this?
I went on to your website and was reading some of the success stories and it was very moving! I am a strong believer in organic medicine such as dance and music for healing. Mitali’s situation is a great example of what the movement of dance can do for somebody.
The way you have also empowered these women by training some of them to be DMT trainers is also commendable. Attitude and image are two things that any woman struggles with, so I can only imagine what that must be like for women who have been subjected to the trafficking culture. You are giving these women tools that are irreplaceable. I wish you the best of luck on your endeavors and breaking down your financial barriers while you continue to save lives through dance!!
----------
MIM, Portland State University
Thank you so much for your comment! In response to your question about why some parents in small villages are hesitant about allowing their children to participate in our DMT classes: One reason is that they are extremely poor, their education and literacy level is very low ( sometimes nill), and they have no access to any outside information. Therefore they have not been exposed to different forms of culture and dance has a negative connotation, as they are mostly familiar with dance in cheap Bollywood films. When we start the DMT process in the community, it takes a long time to motivate and mobilize the community to participate. Once they start noticing the effects of DMT on their children, they are very happy and appreciative to have us working in their community.
I have been fortunate to see Sanved performances including a recent performance in Calcutta on International Dance Day. As Sanved works with some of the same partners we work with (Sanlaap, Apne Aap, ABWU) I have met several of the young women that have moved on to be trainers.
This is a great program that does beautiful work.
----------
John Berger
The Emancipation Network
http://www.madebysurvivors.com/
We are thankful that you saw our program and have interacted with some of our trainers. Thanks for your support!