A nightclub crammed with bodies, drenched in sweat moving to the pounding beat of congas. Thanks to a generation of Hollywood dance films, that’s how we have come to perceive Salsa. The dance form, however, has changed dramatically since the heyday of 1970s New York when hundreds of clubs throughout the city were packed nightly with Puerto Ricans, Dominicans, Cubans and other Latinos swaying their blues away. Today salsa has traveled beyond the world’s most famous island and has found diligent admirers in our own country. So much so that Bangalore is hosting the 4th edition of Annual India International Salsa Congress. “We are bringing together salsa lovers from as far away as the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, Colombia, Spain, France, South America, China, Indonesia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Thailand, Taiwan, Singapore, UAE and other parts of the world,” says Luord Vijay the organiser of the festival.

The festival will host a number of international instructors who are coming down to hold special workshops. “These workshops will help all the fledgling salsa schools around the city. The instructors will also help participants prepare for the All-India Salsa Championship which is to be held in the congress,” adds Vijay.

Kolkata will be represented by the members of city-based Salsa school Vive La Salsa, which is headed by Aditya Upadhya which has been operational for more than four years now. “We have participated in all the four editions of the Congress and we are really excited about this year. It’s wonderful to interact with fellow dancers from different parts of the world,” says Aditya. With a contingent of 26 members, Vive La Salsa is one of the largest groups in the congress.

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