Page 36 - Provoke Magazine Vol2

Chakra Pink: Ukalina Opuwari Dancing into Our Hearts
Born and raised in the Rivers State of Nigeria, Uka- lina has been dancing for over fifteen years. A prac- tice she enjoys so much she says she must dance every day and the only reason she wouldn’t is if her body in- dicates it wants a break. With a sense of respect in her words and a decadence of regal expression, Ukalina has made an impact, by remaining true to her highest self.
I began by asking the story behind her Instagram name, @ChakraPink: “: I love anime, especially Japanese. Chakra is a power, an energy source of strength that you have inside yourself. I couldn’t just say Chakra, so I wanted to add some- thing that made it unique to me, so I included my favorite color, which is pink. That color symbolizes love for me. I am childlike, so full of love. I love life, I love to dance, I love friends, I love people. I love everything.” She has an array of photos were her body is arched in such complicated ways and I thought that they were action shots and she correct- ed me, with a humble laugh, “Nope, I am holding them.”
She was recently presented with 2 of 3 awards in the Grand Awards. This was the first year for this event that rec- ognizes the work of dancers in the area. “I was nominated for 3 awards; best contemporary, best salsa and best overall female dancer.” She won big bringing home the best salsa
the best overall. “I was so excited! I just do my thing and peo- ple appreciate the work. From time to time I see people and they say to me, I love your work, thank you for what you do. I know it is not the VMAs or the Oscars but it means so much to me because I become aware that people are watching, and it is helping them and they really appreciate what I do.”
She is the baby in a group of 8 children; 5 girls and 3 boys. She admits that her mom still spoils her and that she can ask for most anything and she receives it. We shared a few laughs about my experience as a middle child and how I operate because of such. Speaking of her mom, she had this to say: “Everywhere we went, people would always talk about my mom. Your mom is fantastic, she is great at her job, every- thing was always so positive. Even with my dad. I am very hard working because of this. I always said I want to be like my mom, she is so full of life and loving, she is also very jo- vial and playful. She is my best friend, we can joke and play, and she wants to come to all of my shows and be there for me. She loves my friends, and when they see her, there is this pure excitement.
They really love her, they think she is amazing. And all of those things made me want to be just like her, she inspires me so much.” We had a small pronunciation segment as well because although the spelling is the same, Edith, the way it comes off the tongue is much different. I am okay with saying I appreci- ated hers more. It had a certain flavor to it that mine did not.
I then took the talk in a different direction because there are different takes on how true Africans appeal to African Amer- icans. My mom taught me manners, so I first apologized for going political but promised it would just be the one. I asked, “how does the state of America’s relations amongst officers and black people in America impact the true African com- munity, if at all. I loved her response;
36 Provokeusmag.com