Shifu Ash (IND)

ABOUT Shifu

Shifu Ash is a dance movement researcher, philosopher, choreographer & visual artist based in Mumbai, India. His expertise lies in movement practices such as Wing Chun, Aikido, Modern Contemporary Dance, Ballet and Contact Improvisation with an experience of 20 years. He is also a former member of CID-UNESCO Paris (International Dance Council) and the founding member & CEO of ProDancer (earlier known as Dance Council India). Shifu is also the artistic director & founder of Partner Dance International Festival & India Contact Festival.

As a movement practitioner he has trained with number of masters like: Grandmaster IP Chun, Nancy Stark Smith, David Zambrano, Frey Faust, Sara Shelton Mann, Kira Kirsch, Andrew De Lotbinière Hardwood, Akram Khan, Desmond Richardson, Era Jouravlev, Stephanie Godino, Terence Lewis, Mia Michael, Sonya Tayeh, Anjelika Doniy, Danny Ezralow, Ohad Naharin… to name a few.

He has been invited to teach at some of the prestigious dance festivals & companies in India & abroad like Impulstanz Vienna International Dance Festival, Goa Contact Festival, Goa Dance Residency, Berlin Contact Festival, Contact Meets Contemporary Festival Goettingen, Tokyo Nomadic Residency, Chinchintalu Festival Dubai, Terence Lewis Contemporary Dance Company, Nritya Shakti, Institute Of Classical & Modern Dance India, Saint Petersburg Conservatory Dance, Radi Sveta Art, SDVIG Studio, etc.

THE HANDS OF MYSTERY

In this workshop, we will delve deep into the fascinating world of Meridian Flow, which draws inspiration from traditional Chinese medicine. You will also discover how your hands can serve as powerful connectors between your mind, spine, heart, and your entire being.

 

This connection goes beyond the physical realm, reaching into the profound, multi-dimensional layers of your ethereal energy field, all the way to your tangible skin, muscles, organs, and bones. We will explore the concealed energy pathways within your body, learn to communicate through various types of touch, and master the intricate dance between action and reaction. You will also have the opportunity to meet your imagination as your tracking partner.

My interest in Contact Improvisation lies in its capacity to awaken deep intelligence in the body—an intelligence that listens, adapts, and transforms. CI, for me, is a living research into trust, reflex, weight-sharing, and the profound potential of human connection. I see it not only as a dance form but as a language for sensing and being sensed—of finding form within formlessness.

My approach weaves together elements of movement science, somatics and intuitive partnering. I draw from practices such as Axis Syllabus, BMC and martial arts to investigate how spiral dynamics, reflex arcs, and directional forces influence our ability to stay responsive under pressure or uncertainty.