There are few things in life more joyful than a group of smiling people dancing their hearts out.
Lucinda Chrisman and Monica Vantoch of Santa Cruz, California, love to dance and share that passion with others. When a friend of theirs wanted to celebrate being one year cancer-free, they came up with the best way to honor her wish.
Wikimedia Commons
What dance form combines colorful costumes, lively music and smiling faces? Bollywood. So they got to work recreating the ecstatic feeling of a Bollywood dance number for their friend.
Hoping to recreate that high-energy experience in their own hometown, Lucinda and Monica’s first step was to approach their local Costco, where they got permission to give shoppers an unforgettable surprise.
Then they had to get people to participate in the flash mob. So they created a Facebook page, writing:
All levels welcome… enthusiasm is the key ingredient! We want to really embrace the surprise element of this and inspire smiles and fun and spontaneous dancing from onlookers! Invite anyone that wants to join us!
More than 100 people showed interest in the impromptu event, and on the big day, they actually got more than 50 participants in the store ready to dance their hearts out.
Luckily they got it all on video!
YouTube
As shoppers go about their business, the first strains of “London Thumakda” fill the room. People pause what they’re doing and look around, only to discover a group looking like it stepped out of a Bollywood movie had actually been hiding in the aisles!
“It was a simple idea to fulfill a wish and create light after a lot of dark,” the two friends wrote on Facebook. And the event did that and more! As the project developed, it became a way for other cancer survivors to express their contagious joy and celebration.
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People shared with us more stories of how cancer impacted their lives and how this dance, with the intention behind it, brought them hope and comfort. We all were reminded of the wonder and magic of a true flash mob: that within the mundane and the hard, there still exists ecstatic joy and celebration everywhere, in everyone. Dance and music, from any part of the world, can unite us all in joy.
You’d have to be made of stone not to smile as these energetic dancers of all shapes, sizes, and ages dance in the middle of the crowded store! Shoppers even abandon their carts to watch the show, some filming on their phones and others joining in and dancing along with the flash mob.
YouTube
What a fabulous way to celebrate life! These dancers took the time to learn and practice the steps simply to bring light and happiness to those around them. What an amazing bunch!
Watch the Bollywood flash mob in the video below, and don’t forget to make someone smile by sharing.
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