Soham – an online festival of Classical Indian Dance and Music– was our first attempt to bring our vision to centre stage and address head-on the issue at the core of our ethos- ageism. It recognised the need to showcase mature performers or late starters side-lined based merely on chronological age. In a world rife with competition and strictly sticking to business, Soham underlines the importance, recognition and acceptance of what makes our true selves despite obstacles within, outside and around us. 

Soham presents a performing space for this niche of ‘artists’ who find opportunities limited due to an age bar or schedules hard to fit in around essential responsibilities. The inclusion criteria for many festivals, shows and even resources at large are targeted at ‘young dancers’. Soham believes in revelling in the joy of the moment rather than the years gone by.

The aims of the festival are twofold:

• Redefining the intent of pursuing arts, not limited by conventional yardsticks.
• To create an awareness of the presence of an often-disregarded cohort of performers merely based on age.

Soham is a showcase of those non-stereotypical journeys in artistic pursuit that translate into a celebration of life, self and therefore the art form in its true spirit. As a biennial festival, we are delighted to have had 2 successful seasons in Easter of 2021 and 2023 each attracting a gamut of artists. The 2023 season spread even further and attracted applications from Middle- East, India, UK, Europe, America and Canada.