Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Ukrainian artistes have said that wars are about politicians and as artists they have nothing to do with it. Any war, they say, is against humanity, adding that they were not interested in wars. A troupe of artistes from Ukraine was in the city to perform at Lokrang on Saturday. The artistes - all of them dancers – said that the war had not affected activities related to arts and culture in their country. “Theatres are open in my city - Odessa. Ukraine is a huge country. It is not that the entire country has been hit by the war. There are some areas that are affected, there are many areas which are not. So, life is going on, as usual,” Anastasiia, 29, told Free Press.
Anastasia and three co-artistes - Yaroslavna, Nadia and Mariia - were in Mumbai for a cultural performance in February 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine. Since then, they haven’t returned to their country. Anastasiia finds Indian people “cute and nice”. “India is a very special country,” she said. “Butter paneer masala and butter naan,” Anatasiia said when asked what she likes about India. She said that she was single, and her mom and dad are in Ukraine. “I am worried about them.
But so far, they are okay,” she said. She started learning dance when she was six. “I am trained in folk and contemporary dances, especially in Hopak, a traditional Ukrainian folk dance form. But I am a self-trained artiste. I did not join any institution to learn,” Anatasiia said. Yaroslavna said that they would showcase Ukraine’s culture through their performance at Lokrang. “We will be performing Hopak. I hope people will like it,” she added.
