Reaching the final of the BBC Young Dancer competition last year opened a lot of doors for me, especially as a young south Asian artist. It was a massive help in letting people see what I could do. I performed at Latitude with Sadler’s Wells, and at Wembley stadium for the Indian prime minister Narendra Modi’s visit in November.Richard Alston invited me to be in his new work. An Italian in Madrid is influenced by the life of the Italian composer Domenico Scarlatti, who moved to Spain and created more than 150 sonatas for Princess Maria Bárbara. His work became very much influenced by Spanish music and guitar. The music is absolutely beautiful, and Richard’s piece is about the mixing of cultures. For me, it’s also about how I am being influenced by contemporary dance.I usually travel down from Birmingham three or four times a week to train with my teacher, Sujata Banerjee, in London. During rehearsals I’m staying at her house. I get up bright and early, and have been trying to meditate, which I find difficult – but I want not to have a chaotic mind going into rehearsals.At the Place, the day starts with a full company class, either ballet or contemporary. Richard’s choreography is very much based in music – although his dancers’ style is so different, our musicality is similar. The main aspect of kathak is the footwork – the feet are almost a musical instrument, displaying the rhythmic cycles played by the tabla drums. There’s a nice balance between grace and rhythm. -