Can’t touch this: Step up to the streets of Karachi

After being thrown out of gyms, the B-Boys were finally invited to dance.

KARACHI:

As 12-year -old Haider Babar spun on the plywood floor, some looked on in awe and others, his competitors, booed. Introductions were over and the ‘battle’ between the B-Boys had officially begun.

ActOne put up Facebook and radio announcements, asking all the B-Boys - a form of break dancing - to show up at their studio at 5:30 pm on Saturday to show off their moves.

And show up they did, with their hair done up in Mohawks and New York Yankee baseball caps. Roughly 40 dancers invaded the ActOne Studio and despite the fierce looks and competition, off the floor they are all just friends.

B-Boy dancing originated on the streets of New York. Its popularity grew through YouTube and Orkut. There are over 100 B-Boys in Karachi and they are all connected via social networking websites. For most of them, this was their first time performing on a plywood floor. Mehreen Fatima, the only B-Girl at the event, said the B-Boy community usually practiced at the National Coaching Centre NCC in Gulshan-e-Iqbal. The ground is not ideal but it’s the only option as most places kick them out.

The boys began with Pakor - a skill that involved reaching from point A to point B in the shortest, quickest way possible. Twenty-one-year-old Abdullah Ahmed Khan, aka Sanki, was one of the pioneers. His story is sad, albeit amusing. He was practicing with friends in a gym when they were asked to stop by the management. “Bandaron ki tarha tamasha mat karo (stop jumping around like monkeys),” they were told. Mehreen, however, claimed that people smile and stop to watch when they are practicing. Even if they are not familiar with the style, they still find it entertaining.

Though the dancers make it look effortless, preparing for a performance and learning the steps requires a lot of strenuous exercise, stretching and of course - practice.

It is also by no means safe, the dancers end up with sprained ankles, broken bones and countless bruises. “I was at a shoot when I hit my head on an iron bench while jumping off an eight or 10-foot-high obstacle,” Ahmed told The Express Tribune. The Uchong brothers, Vernin and Neil, stood out in the crowd as they appeared the most animated with their constant somersaults. The crowd wasn’t as appreciative though - their back flips were met with snide mutterings of “show-offs”. Ariella Khan, 12, was alight with amazement, “I’ve never seen anything like it!,” she exclaimed. “There really should be more performances like this.”

In the end, for all the friendly banter, there was no winner or loser. They just enjoyed dancing for the love of the floor - and the fact that they didn’t have to worry about getting kicked out any minute.





Published in The Express Tribune, July 17^th, 2011.