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French beat goes on

Reading Time:3 minutes
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This year the French consulate has extended the boundaries of Le French May in lots of different directions, promoting not just the usual parade of movies, painters and baroque ensembles, but food, and even French techno.

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In fact it turns out the French even have a French Music Export Office in Paris, which will be 'supporting' (which probably means paying for) La Nuit Strictly Underground II tonight at Bar City.

After last week's incredible set by the French funk band, FFF, no one can still harbour any doubts about the French music industry. Truly, there have been dark days, and the shadow of Vanessa Paradis is a long one, but in 1998 in Europe at least, French acts compete with the best of Brit-pop, and sometimes win.

So if your musical tastes run that way, tonight's set by three of France's most admired DJs at Bar City should not be missed. Jef K, Sven Love, and DJ Sonic are not exactly household names, even in France, but French house and techno fans know their work well. Things start rolling at 11pm.

Dilemma of the Indian dancers Since it did it too, not so long ago, I can't imagine the French Government was in much of a position to say anything when India carried out a nuclear test a few weeks ago. So it is unlikely performances of the same kind of Indian dance tonight at the French and the Indian consulates are anything other than an unfortunate coincidence, rather than a diplomatic offensive.

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It does make for a painful dilemma for fans of bharat natyam, an ancient classical dance form. Usually it is performed by women, like Malvika Sarukkai, who will appear at the Caritas Hall, on Caine Road, this evening at 7.30pm. Sarukkai has been dancing professionally since the age of 12.

Less often, it is performed by men like Raghunath Manet, who will appear with an eight-man group of musicians tonight at City Hall at 8pm. He first became interested in the art form when he watched his sister study under a well-respected guru in his native town of Pondicherry. Despite considerable opposition from both the guru, and his family, he began to train as a dancer and is now well respected for his unique approach which uses the tandava form, the most energetic form of bharat natyam.

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