Mesma Belsare Dancer & LGBT Activist

In this exclusive audio interview Emmy Winner Charlotte Robinson host of OUTTAKE VOICES™ talks with dancer Mesma Belsare who presented a spectacular full-length evening concert of Bharatanatyam which is classical dance from South India, at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Mesma was joined by Carnatic vocalist Deepti Navaratna. This concert explored LOVE from the carnal to the spiritual through the language of music, dance and poetry in compositions that were performed in South Indian temples and royal courts in the 8th, 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. Mesma is a true activist and supporter of LGBT issues. She has performed for numerous LGBT events and continues to show how love transcends gender roles and challenges everyone to look within themselves to find their true spirituality of love. We talked to Mesma about this and her spin on our LGBT issues.

When asked what she would like to see the Obama administration accomplish for our LGBT community in the next four years Belsare stated, “I think that President Obama’s open public support of LGBT people is an affirmation of this country’s progressive direction especially among the youth. The fact that he had to be so careful about his support during his first term was an unfortunate reality and probably incensed many people but I know that a country cannot make progress if we are honoring the fundamental rights of its people in a way that is not uniform. The United States is not an exception to that rule. In an ideal world I would like the President to take measures to enable the country to treat its people equally in all aspects of life. Only then can we have change in attitude and perfection towards people and I really am hopeful that the current administration will put these debates to rest so that we can move forward because we have so many other issues on a global level to tackle. Quite honestly I find it not a very productive debate in terms of making progress because we are not making progress if are still debating all of this.”

The New York times calls Mesma Belsare "a tour de force". The Dance Current Magazine describes her "as mesmerizing as staring into the heart of a fire". Her professional dancing career spans more than two decades and includes performances as a solo dancer at international venues including Lincoln Center (NYC), Asia Society (NYC), Alvin Ailey Theater (NYC) and the Harbourfront Centre (Toronto). She was twice nominated for the Brother Thomas Fellowship by The Boston Foundation and once for the Dora Mavor Moore Award by the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts. Mesma is a recipient of the Government of India scholarship for advanced training in classical Bharatanatyam and Indian classical music. Her concert at the Multicultural Arts Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts was made possible by a grant from The Cambridge Arts Council.
For More Info: mesmabelsare.com