The story of Kamal (Noddy) Singh is a remarkable one. A young Sikh boy from a modest background – the son of an e-rickshaw driver and a graduate of a government boys school in Vikaspuri, New Delhi. Noddy aka Kamal Singh has an incredible talent for dance and is on the threshold of an international career in the rarified world of classical ballet.
Studying Sikh martial arts and Tae Kwon Do, and dancing at family gatherings, he always liked grooving. Four years back, after watching the movie ABCD, he got in touch with Maestro Fernando Aguilera, a dancer, teacher, and choreographer from the prestigious Colon Theatre in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He has settled in India since 2001. Maestro Fernando runs a ballet company in New Delhi (IFBC), and when he encountered Noddy’s raw talent and deep passion, he offered to train him in one of the most beautiful and rigorous dance forms in the world, Russian Classical Ballet.
https://vimeo.com/377363537 (Video Link)
Kamal Singh was a dedicated student, who used to do training from morning to evening, performing at every opportunity. He soon acquired the leading roles in the performances that used to happen at the IFBC. He became a dedicated dancer and also took children’s classes. In the summer of 2019, he got an amazing opportunity – a place at the Summer Intensive Program of the elite Vaganova Academy in St Petersburg, Russia, one of the foremost ballet schools in the world. He impressed his teachers so much that he was given a solo performance in the closing gala, and offered a scholarship to return the following year.
Despite the disruptions of the Covid-19 pandemic, Noddy successfully completed the Vaganova program – virtually from India, this summer. His teachers were once more dazzled, so much so that one of them expressed shock that he had only been training in this dance form since 2016!
At present, Noddy is about to embark on one of the most exciting chapters of his life. He has been offered a one-year apprentice program at the school of the English National Ballet in London, a certain gateway to a future position with an international ballet company. The costs of this program, not to mention living expenses in world capital like London, are substantial but thanks to the tremendous efforts of Maestro Fernando and the generous help of donors, Noddy’s dream is within reach: the dream to represent India – and the Sikh community – on the global Ballet stage!
