The Upanayana Project

Performance | Qualitative Research | In Progress

The upanayana, a Hindu ceremony defined as a rite of passage towards higher education. Originally, the ceremony was not caste or gender discriminatory, but through generations and with layers of exclusionary scriptures, the ceremony has become a rite of passage for Brahmin boys to pursue an education in Hindu rites and rituals. The ritual has also become connoted as a rite to manhood.

In some regions of India, prior to the ceremony, the boy is dressed in the drag of a Hindu woman as a ‘last’ opportunity to embody the feminine. The ceremony itself is a series of rituals including learning brahmanical chants and cutting of hair as a rebirth into the man’s dharma (duties to his caste). This project is a Bharatanatyam dance piece inspired by personal lived experiences and interviews with people who have underwent the ceremony exploring the complexity behind following tradition.

Two of the three parts of this project have been presented - first at a work in progress showing facilitated by Modern Connections in June, 2024 at Jackson Dance Lab, Tufts University and the WeCreate Festival organized by Danza Orgánica in April, 2025.