Hoop dancing her way to everyone’s heart

ISP Delhi Bureau

Here is a youngster who is motivating people to find joy in creative expressions and be connected with their bodies. Eshna Kutty (25) Hoop Flow artiste, model and entrepreneur, meet the new sensation of the country. Her Sari Hoop dance was a viral content on almost all platforms recently. A performing artiste and a certified dance movement therapist, Eshna is these days increasingly busy in hoop dance stage performances and conducting workshops all across India and abroad.

“I also sing a bit, play the guitar, juggle, sketch and enjoy acro-yoga, hip hop, and dance hall,” says Eshna, founder of Hoop Flo, which manufacturers hula hoops and conducts workshops on this emerging art form.

Her journey as a performing artiste started in a unique way. As a teen, she got hooked on to videos on contemporary dances using the hula hoop as a prop and taught herself and then improvised it. She created her own style incorporating all the varied interests and skills she had.

From capoeira to gymnastics to a bit of ballet you will find a bit of everything in her routines.

Parallel to her growth as a hoop dance artiste, she pursued psychology, graduating from the Lady Shri Ram College for Women in Delhi. To combine her love for psychology and dance, she did a post graduate course in movement therapy from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.

“The knowledge of movement therapy has played a big role in expanding my vocabulary, mentally and physically, and helped me become a better facilitator in conducting workshops. I believe hooping is for everybody, from all body types, to all genders, to all ages,” says Eshna.

She been invited to conduct workshops for diverse groups , ranging from convicted inmates of Tihar Jail, to slum kids in Mumbai, from women over 60 years of age to the surfing instructors of Tamil Nadu. From people with artistic and creative backgrounds to corporates and white collar executives, from children with physical disability to gymnasts training for the Commonwealth Games.

“All the world is a stage for me – but I count my performances at TedX Gurugram, Times Power Women 2018, The 1965 War festival, the Indian Juggling Convention, BITS Pilani, and Spandan Festival of Performing Arts as special. Over the past couple of years I hoop danced my way into the world of modelling as well and worked with brands like Exide, Google Pixel, Burlap People, Nescafe,” Eshna reveals.

Last year, Eshna launched her company Hoop Flo to manufacture collapsible hula hoops that people can easily keep. At Hoop Flo, Eshna’s team is engaged in innovating the product and its accessories. The aim is to make the hoop more and more accessible to everyone. Hoop Flo is creating bags, straps and other innovative things that would make it easy for people to carry the hoop.