A 13-year-old Chinese girl made history when she performed the Bharatanatyam “Arangetram” in China, a milestone in the development of this ancient Indian dance form that is becoming increasingly popular in the neighboring country.

Lei Muzi made her solo dance debut here on Sunday in front of celebrated Bharatanatyam dancer Leela Samson, Indian diplomats and a large audience of Chinese fans.

For the performers of the ancient dance from South India, Arangetram, as it is called in Tamil, is their first appearance on stage in front of teachers and experts as well as the audience.

Only after Arangetram are the students allowed to perform alone or train aspiring dancers.

“This is the very first arangetram by a student who was fully trained in China and performed in China,” said TS Vivekanand, First Secretary of the Indian Embassy in charge of culture, who attended the event.

It was an Arangetram conducted in a very traditional manner, he told PTI here.

“Lei’s Arangetram is the first time that Chinese students trained by a Chinese teacher have performed in China. This is a milestone in the history of Bharatanatyam heritage,” noted Chinese Bharatanatyam dancer Jin Shan Shan, who trained Lei.

Shruti Rawat, wife of Indian Ambassador Pradeep Rawat, was the guest of honour at Lei’s Arangetram. The event was attended by a large crowd of fans who cheered her during the two-hour long performance in which she danced to several classical numbers.

In addition to Leela Sampson, a team of musicians flown in from Chennai sang the classical pieces for Lei’s performance.

She is scheduled to perform in Chennai later this month.

Lei received her training for over ten years at the Bharatanatyam school of Jin, who herself was the first accomplished Bharatanatyam dancer to hold her Arangetram in New Delhi in 1999.

Jin was one of many Chinese students trained by the famous Chinese dancer Zhang Jun.

Lei, also known as Dudu, says she fell in love with Bharatanatyam since she joined Jin’s school in 2014.

“I fell in love with it completely. I continue dancing to this day. For me, Bharatanatyam is not only a beautiful art and dance form but also the embodiment of Indian culture,” she told PTI.

“This fascinates me a lot, as well as the beautiful and graceful movements during a dance. Overall, I love Bharatanatyam very much. For me, it is already a daily activity and I am really interested in the culture of India,” she said.

Jin, who is widely known in China and India and has performed widely, said she was proud that one of her students had completed her arangetram.

“Bharatanatyam brought us closer together. For 10 years, Lei came to my house every weekend to attend classes. Not only did I get to witness her development, but we also became a family,” she said.

“It reminds me of what my guru, Leela Samson, taught me when I was doing my Arangetram,” she said.

“The Arangetram on Sunday is a celebration for us,” said Jin.