Solitude Festival

The week-end of the 2nd of February was the time of the Solitude Festival. For the occasion Tiago has been asked to give a Capoeira workshop. Most of the AV adult capoeiristas eventually joined the event and we ended up the workshop with a roda. A nice moment ;)

Interview with Tiago

Here is an interview by Roberto (volunteer at AurovilleRadio AurovilleTV) of Tiago regarding his way  of understanding Capoeira.

A Peacock from Czech Republic

Since few weeks Graduado Pavão from the Abadá group is in visit in Auroville with his partner.

They have been a really appreciable presence, coming regularly to our classes, respecting the traditions of Capoeira Angola and the way of working of the group.
Pavão, carpenter as per profession, is also teaching the Svaram people to make atabaque in order for them to share this knowledge with us but also with the growing capoeira scene in India.

After giving a workshop to Nandanam school students he is now offering one for adults from the 20th to the 23th included in the Tibetan Pavilion.

This beautiful couple is unfortunetly heading back to their country this week. We hope to have a longer and less busy schedule for our next exchange when they will come back as they will ;)
Waiting for that, here are few pictures of the workshop:

Saarang workshop video

Here is a video compiled out of what has been filmed during the Saarang Festival workshop given Friday 11th of January 2013 at IIT Madras:

T-shirt

9PM Thursday 10th of January, we just finished our class but still have something to do: finish the t-shirts we prepare since a bit more than week for the occasion of the Saarang Festival. The process as been long and done entirely by hand. The stencil was drawn by Tanya and prepared by Kiran. The printing mostly done by Kiran will end Thursday at 11.30PM. We need to wake up few hours later to take the bus for Chennai...

Saarang Festival 2013

Capoeira Auroville has been invited to give a workshop at the Saarang Festival (http://www.saarang.org/main/) happening in Chennai from the 9th to the 13th of January 2013. The workshop will happen the 11th from 11AM to 1PM.

Chennai guys and other, do not miss this opportunity to try out Capoeira and share with us a moment which will surely be fun.

For further information contact works@saarang.org.

November Visitors

After September, November... This time the visitors were not from Mumbai but Pune. 

They had invited us in August for their first batizado and they decided to come and visit our community. We had the pleasure to receive most of the Pune group people during what was supposed to be the monsoon season. Starting with the teacher, Ana and a friend of us Manoj (who stayed for a month), they all poped-up one after the other and even managed to bring a magnificent peacock :)

They experienced living in the Auroville forest, farming, lasying, translating, drinkring vinagar wine, surfing, Pondying, cycling through Auroville (a bit ;)) and of course playing Capoeira with us.

Their energy moved us and offered some of the student the possibility to meet other capoeiristas. By the way Sagar, your style and presence was much appreciated by some of the students ;)

Ana, Manoj, Sagar, Abobra, Pavao, Chetan, Erin, Ritesh, we really enjoyed having you among us for these few weeks. You are more than welcome to come back any time you wish and be sure we will visit you. Axé !!!

September Visitors

At the end of September we gladly received 2 visitors, one being from the Pune group and the other from Mumbai.

Natureza (in visit in India but originally from Brazil) started Capoeira few months ago with Ana in Pune and came to visit Auroville for about 10 days. She volunteered in Windara and participated to our classes. An appreciated visit full of exchange under the light of her beautiful brazilian accent. Gatinha, gatinha... ;)

A more surprising and highly unexpected visit was the one of Gata Dutta from CDO Mumbai. Coming towards Chennai on a week-end trip she decided to make a detour by Pondicherry and visit us. To tell the truth, the 30th of September was a heavy day but she and 2 of her friends still managed to reach AV regardless the car troubles and the misguidance from our city guards. They stayed for few hours and left after a short game. A crazy evening in fact :)

Girls, both of you are welcome anytime in AV. Let hope we see each other you soon ;)

Edward L Powe

Tuesday 4th of September we had the visit of Edward L Powe author of  "The ABC and B-A-Ba of Capoeira Angola".

Arriving in Auroville at lunch time he met with few of us for a meal. At 3PM we moved towards Deepaman School where he showed the capoeira students how to play Zulu Chess and offered them a capoeira workshop mostly based on defense techniques. At 4.30PM the available adults joined the kids for a short movement session followed by the sharing of dance/capoeira videos he filmed during his trips. As a researcher Edward traveled around the world several time to collect informations about martial arts, dance, games and other ancient practices.
This unexpected meeting turned out being an interesting sharing with a person knowing capoeira from another angle. In the scope of his researches he learnt capoeira angola with Mestre Pastinha in 1967 amd shortly met with Mestre Bimba. From that and various meetings with different capoeira groups he made his on teaching method of capoeira.
Definitely a knowledgeable person which we would have liked to keep a bit longer with us.

To know more about him:
www.danaikipublications.org
www.blacfoundation.org