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The overcrowded streets of Chennai, India, are a far cry from the bucolic nature of Hamilton, N.Y.  But senior Kenny Hadden, if anything, learned to appreciate those differences.

“It’s easy to think things that are different are worse.  It was crowded, dirty, and loud, and those things often have negative connotations.  But that atmosphere was also what made India vibrant and colorful and alive.  For me, the amazing thing was seeing people live a completely different way than we do, and to be there long enough to see that living differently works,” he said.

Kenny Hadden traveled extensively during his off-campus study experience in India. (Photo by Jess Buchsbaum)

Studying abroad, he said, is all about becoming comfortable with the uncomfortable or different.

And Hadden, if anyone, should know.  After six months abroad in New Zealand during his junior year, and the first semester of his senior year spent in India, Hadden is well-versed in the language of cultural differences. 

Hadden spent the four months in India with 17 other 51�Թ��� students and William Skelton, Robert Ho Professor in Asian studies and professor of music, emeritus.  The study group was based in Chennai, a city on the southeast coast of the country.  The students took courses together, traveled, and submerged themselves in the culture.

But perhaps the capstone event of the semester was the group’s production of the Silappadikaram, an epic poem written around the sixth century.  The epic has been adapted into an elaborate dance accompanied by music and spoken text.

The 51�Թ��� group gave four performances of the Silappadikaram at the renowned Chennai Arts Festival in late November and December.  The festival, which celebrates traditional Tamil culture, draws enormous crowds from around the world.

The Silappadikaram performances saw some of the largest crowds at the festival, with the opening night performance attracting about 1,000 patrons.

The epic is written in Tamil, which is the oldest language still spoken in the world – dating back more than 2,000 years.  The text in the Silappadikaram has been modernized over the years.  The group compared passages of the revamped text with the original text to see if the overarching message was still accurate.  They were surprised to see how little the language had changed.

The 51�Թ��� group was divided into dancers and musicians.  Rehearsals were held every day for nearly two hours; longer as opening night drew closer.  51�Թ��� students studied the traditional South Indian dance, Bharata Natyam, at a local dance school under the direction of Sudharani Raghupathy, one of the most highly regarded South Indian dance specialists.  She had started a dance school with Skelton many years ago. 

“The project really transcended cultural bounds, using aspects of both our cultures to create a great show,” said Hadden.

The dance was divided into a dozen or so scenes, combining spoken text (Skelton read English translations of the original Tamil text), dance, and music.  Specific chants, symbols, rhythms, and music corresponded to each dance.  Dancers acted out the spoken text through dance and intricate hand gestures.

Hadden could only describe the costumes as “intense.”  The women wore custom- made, madras silk saris decorated in elaborate colors, and the men wore special tunics.

The group practiced in the studio at the dance school, and never saw the stage they would be performing on at the arts festival until opening night.  The group performed on a different stage every night, and the stage sizes and shapes varied accordingly.  The dancers and musicians were forced to improvise nightly.

But the Silappadikaram was merely a piece of Hadden’s experience in India. 

Outside of classes and rehearsals, Hadden focused his efforts on meeting local residents and traveling.  He said at times there was a discernible tension between him and local boys his age.

“It’s hard sometimes,” he said, referring to meeting new people.  “First, there’s the language barrier.  Very few people speak English, unless they’re in a wealthy private school or at the dance school.  The tension between us isn’t outright, but it’s manifested in conversation.  They want to know about your money.  And they’re not rude about it at all.  They’re just mystified by white people and assume that you’re very rich.  It makes it hard to make friends.” 

Hadden said staying in the city of Chennai presented some challenges: overcrowded conditions, extreme heat, and the surrounding flat, desert landscape.

As a result, Hadden traveled quite a bit during his stay.  One 10-day trip took him to Sikkim, a state in northern India.  He spent eight days hiking in the foothills of the Himalayas, making his way between towns, most of which were about 30 kilometers apart. 

Hadden described Sikkim as “pristine,” mainly due to the tightly regulated tourism.  Though it was $500 for the plane ticket (there is only one flight every other day to Sikkim), Hadden noted with a smile that the rest of his trip – food and lodging included – cost him a mere 50 bucks.  He stayed in people’s homes, bed-and-breakfast style, and would spend his days hiking. 

“I just needed some green and some space,” he said. 
Hadden admitted that he was relieved to return to the United States, but thankful for the time he spent in India.

“The thing about going abroad is that you appreciate a new way of living.  You learn that different isn’t always bad.”

Hadden has returned for the remainder of his senior year with a barrage of experiences behind him, having seen two unique sides of the globe.  After a semester of experiencing a very different and sometimes emotionally jarring way of living, the bucolic nature of Hamilton is the far and familiar cry he needed.