At a dance studio in Westwood, California the chum chum sounds from the payals can be heard loudly. In preparation for their set, the Tajik dancers stretch in the parking lot; dancers of Indian and Pakistani descent perform their sequence, looking at a mirror in their hands and dramatically push it away with immense fervor. Dancers from California to Arizona practice with conviction and urgency knowing, they are only ten days away from July 11th, the launch of the Diamond Jubilee. 

Sophia Hasham is a dancer from San Diego; she shares her thoughts about the upcoming Jubilee. “I think I was excited at first that Diamond Jubilee was happening, but this opportunity to dance has made me even more excited because I am a part of it. I’m participating. I get to do what I love, and I’m going to perform as if I am performing for Mawlana Hazar Imam, which is really nice.” She speaks about the unity she has witnessed over the past two weeks of dance practices, “I thought our Ismaili community was tight-knit, but just seeing it firsthand opened up my eyes a little bit, like everybody coming together… It’s not just the dancers but the people organizing it, volunteering to get food for us, renting out a studio. We’re a phenomenal community I think.” She speaks about her hope to lead such an endeavor sometime in the near future.

Meanwhile, Zohra Dodhia and Farah Amin from the Persian dance group take a break to stretch their feet and relax. Although they both attend Santa Monica Jamatkhana, their paths do not usually intersect. Farah speaks about how being part of the dance performances has made her feel more connected to the Diamond Jubilee. Zohra expresses her appreciation for how the dance ensemble consists of different age groups, enabling friendships that may not normally emerge organically.

Tania Ahmed, Performance Talent Coordinator, explains her twofold vision for these performances: “To bring youth to open their minds and see the different cultures that exist among the Ismaili religion, to see the beauty, to revel in it and to break out of the norm which is the South Asian and African cultures. Secondly, it’s to develop the Ismaili identity, bringing in the strong background and foundation of who they are, where they come from, and how versatile and how beautiful the different cultures are.”

Not only are the performances representative of different cultures, but the dancers are intermingled. “We’ve got Orange County kids mixed in with Los Angeles Headquarters kids with Torrance kids, so it’s really nice. They’re making new friendships, they’re forming lifelong experiences, this is something they will walk away with and remember for years to come.” Tania was engaged in the performing arts events during the Golden Jubilee ten years ago. She remarks that a lot of the dancers from Golden Jubilee came back as leads. She glowingly says, “It’s really nice to see that the next time there’s an event like this, these dancers are the ones that will be leading the show; it’s really nice to see that generational movement.”