Sasha bashir wants to promote the various dance forms in the world through her documentary and coffeetable book

Sasha with her book

Dance is Sasha Bashir’s passion. This Malaysian dancer is as captivated by our own Pelanduk dance as she is with the Australian aboriginal dance.

In order to create an awareness of the many types of dance forms in Malaysia and other parts of the world, she decided to produce a documentary series aptly titled Dansa (Dance) under her production house, Sasha Bashir Sdn Bhd, which was established late last year.

Dansa, which is her maiden effort, comprises 13 episodes highlighting 13 dances from different cultures. Among them are the kecak dance from Bali, Indonesia; ougi odori from the Japanese geisha world; the Australian aboriginal dance; sumayu from Sabah; pelanduk from Pahang; and ngajat lesung from Sarawak.

Dubbed in Malay and English, the Malay version was aired over TV3 in January. The English version is currently showing on ntv7 every Thursday at 7.30pm.

Sasha, 29, who hosts all the episodes, said she made it a point to learn all the dance forms featured in her documentary. "This is to give viewers a more personal touch and in-depth understanding of each dance form," she says.

Her next pet project was writing and publishing a coffeetable book titled Dansa – A Dance Journey, based on the documentary. The 200-page hardcover book, which was launched recently, features some 250 photographs from the documentary as well as behind-the-scenes pictures taken while Sasha and her crew travelled to the 13 locations for the documentary.

Written by Sasha herself, the book contains forewords by Malaysian theatre activist Prof Dr Hatta Azad Khan and international theatre producer Hugh Wooldrige.

"Different people are comfortable with different media," said the 29-year-old dancer, explaining her decision to publish the coffeetable book. "Some people like moving visuals while others like to read. Personally, I love coffeetable books and I love buying them. Sometimes I have to stop myself from buying too many!"

The Malay petenun dance.

She also said the documentary and the book are a recognition for the people who have kept the dance forms well and alive.

"Some of them have limited resources, yet they are so passionate about keeping their traditional dance forms alive at any price," she said, adding that she admired the effort they put into preserving their art.

She admitted that producing the documentary and the coffeetable book simultaneously was stressful and she suffered many sleepless nights. But, ultimately, she found the whole experience rewarding and enriching.

This industrious woman is already planning to produce a second season of Dansa, this time showcasing another 13 different dance forms. And, maybe, followed by another coffeetable book in the near future.

"At least now, there is some form of documentation," she said, referring to her work. "People can use this documentary for references and research."

She hopes to produce more documentaries on arts and culture in future.

Sasha’s love affair with dance goes back to her childhood days when, at the age of four, she learnt ballet. Not surprisingly, she graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts.

"In my university days, I specialised in contemporary dance," she said. "Now I do not stick to one genre. I admire every dance form as I feel every dance has its own beauty. I used to think that not being able to stick to one dance form was a weakness. But not any more. I’ve become adaptable."

However, she admitted that she does have a little more affection and preference for traditional dance forms from Asia. "I’m biased towards them," she said, adding that she loves the elegance of these dances.

The Thai gold nail dance.

"Almost all Asian traditional dances have elegant moves and involve exotic costumes."

After completing her studies in Australia, Sasha worked as a dance teacher and choreographer in Perth. Upon returning to Malaysia, she worked with Istana Budaya as director of marketing.

She has also performed in several dance theatre productions such as My Bollywood Summer, Titiwangsa and Emas 10, and even tried her hand at hosting TV shows such as The Extreme Journey and Beauty Secrets from the East.

Sasha has also done some acting, having been part of the cast for the award-winning The Red Kebaya and musical TV drama, 5 Jingga.

This dance advocate firmly believes that dance and the performing arts should be taught in schools as a subject.

"This way, young Malaysians will start appreciating the art," she said, adding that when she was in Australia, she used to teach dance in schools.