- What can an ancient dance tradition teach us about the world that we live in today?

Sarayu Ramanan with Nitya Nritya is here to tell us about "Upatti."

And thank you so much for joining us today.

- Thank you so much for having me on.

- First off, I want to say congratulations on 10 years.

That's a huge thing to be around for that long, instilling culture and influence here in Utah.

- Thank you so much.

We are really proud, we marked our 10-year anniversary with the annual Nitya Nritya Festival held here in Salt Lake that brings world-class classical Indian musicians and dancers and performers to perform here on stages in Salt Lake.

- And now you have other celebrations that are happening throughout the year, continuing the education and also the celebration aspects of it.

Why now at this time is it important to put on another event?

- Sure.

This time of year, October, November, annually, is a time when a lot of South Asian communities celebrate the divine feminine.

There's you might hear Durga, Kali, Shakti, but it's an annual tradition of celebrating the female deities.

And so we bring this work, "Upatti-Coming to Be," at this time because really that word is from an ancient Pali language and it means to be reborn or to come into being.

And this piece examines the divine feminine from a historical context.

In human history, and particularly in South Asian history, you'd find that societies really revered female deities when they were looking for protection, nurturing, and fertility.

And then as society evolved, you have things like monotheism, centralized political power, and you see the rise of the worship of male deities.

So this piece kind of examines that in a cultural context through the medium of Bharatanatyam, which is a classical South Indian dance.

- And what are you hoping people will get from this as they leave and after they watch it?

- Well, while the context is very much rooted in South Asian history and tradition, the themes are deeply universal, and it's a beautiful way to explore the power and the mastery of dance through the lens of female power.

- Well, thank you so much for stopping by.

If you would like to check out this celebration, this performance, we have the information for you on our screen.

It's November 7th from 70 to 8:30 PM.

Just head to the website that's on the screen for more details.

I'm Liz Adeola, and thank you for watching "Contact."

(uplifting music) Philanthropy, Arts, culture.

It's what brings us together.

Hi, I'm Liz Adeola, the host of Contact, a show that connects you with local events and organizations that serve your community.

If you work for a nonprofit and would like to be on Contact, please visit pbs.org/contact