Are you someone who loves grooving to music? Or are you someone who just enjoys the thrill of trying something new, and rather exotic? Well, you are who we are looking for.

Raffles Institution Indian Dance (or RI iDance) is a closely bonded CCA that hopes to inculcate the love for dance among its members while ensuring that each and every member is provided the opportunity to showcase their talents, abilities and passion. RI iDance continues to soar to greater heights, whilst exposing its members to various dance forms, under the guidance of our teachers and choreographers.

We are all about sharing our passion of dance with others. You don’t need to be Indian, a trained dancer or a gymnast to be part of iDance. We accept students of all races, abilities, languages and backgrounds. We are a cheerful and friendly bunch that believes in sharing whatever knowledge in dance we have to help each other. For the boys – don’t worry, you are also welcome to join our CCA! Don’t let the common misconception that Indian Dance is only for ladies deter you.

This year, we had the opportunity of performing a fusion dance piece that combined a Spanish genre, Flamenco, and Kathak, an Indian dance form. This item was showcased during the ArtsFest organised by the school, and was restaged during Colours of India, a production by RGInd. However, we perform classical bharathanatyam items during events such as Sangamam and the Singapore Youth Festival (SYF). Members are encouraged by our choreographer, Mrs Sreedevy Sivarajasingam, to share their opinions and concerns, making the choreography process much more interesting.

We also do several Bollywood items each year for school events such as Open House, Take 5 and the National Day celebrations. These bollywood numbers are usually choreographed by our very own iDance members, where we have everyone contribute an idea, ranging from steps to formation. Members with no prior experience in Bollywood go the extra mile to learn from Youtube videos before suggesting steps for us to add into our choreography. The wide range of dance genres that we perform helps to create versatile performers as well as a closely bonded CCA.

Nadya Leonora Neo Rui En (15S03F), one of our non-Indian members, notes, “Admittedly, there were initial worries for me as I’m not experienced in Indian Dance. However, there is no need to worry as people here are really friendly and always willing to lend a helping hand.”

The calendar for iDance is usually more packed with performances at the start of the academic year, and includes occasional performances during the third school term. For the year 2015, our biggest performance will be SYF, where more intensive training sessions will be held to complete and polish the choreography, which is to be staged in late April. We will be training on Mondays and Wednesdays, besides which training dates are flexible and dependent on the availability of our choreographer.

We hope that you will be part of the RI iDance family!

Your first step is to select your target, but of course you’ve already done that. You’ve already seen it lurking within the narrow window that is your viewfinder. Your weapon of choice is already warm in the palm of your hand. You tense in anticipation, finger poised at the ready.

When the moment arrives, your actions are swift and decisive.

Point. Aim. Shoot.

Tim Walker, a British fashion photographer whose work has been included in magazines such as Vogue, once said, “Only photograph what you love.” Whether you own a DSLR and enjoy taking breathtaking shots of nature and scenery, prefer taking selfies or shots with your iPhone, or even taking a leap into analogue and film, you have come to the right place! Raffles Photographic Society – or more affectionately known as ‘photog’ – seeks to document the moments of everyday school life, serving to capture the image of the quintessential Rafflesian in our natural habitat.

Here at Photog, we strive to work in the moment. Our wish is to become proficient enough in the art of photography so as to record significant moments in our lives (and the lives of others), be it in the present or in the future, such that at the end of our time at Raffles we will have mementos of the time we spent here. Photog is also a great way to meet new people as you’ll have the chance to collaborate with many other student bodies, departments and other CCAs to work on signature events, such as Deck the Walls (photos for CCAs which are displayed near the Gryphon Square), Artseason and RProj, alongside a multitude of school and student-initiated events.

Aspiring professional photographers and hobbyists alike are provided with a chance to interact with like-minded peers and learn more about the art while developing the heart for our community. Under the tutelage of our instructor Mr Joel Yuen and our teachers-in-charge, CCA sessions are a merry affair with a wide range of activities that encourage the holistic development of the members. There is a great emphasis on service to our society – whether through coverage of various events happening in school or direct service to our community. For example, we do our best to play our part in the community by organising CIP projects. One particularly memorable CIP project was when we assisted REACH Family Service Center in providing free family portraits.

Sessions are held every Friday from 4.30pm-6.30pm. These usually include tutorials by our instructor, during which we test the theories we are taught in practical sessions when we run around in school with our cameras. Occasionally, this weekly routine is interspersed with outings to photogenic locations such as the Henderson Waves and the Dragon Kiln.

Should this little snapshot of our CCA pique your interest, we welcome anyone with a passion for photography to our tryouts! For any queries, feel free to approach Gabrielle Jeyaseelan, 15S06A (Chairperson) or Nigel Gomes, 15S06R (Vice-Chairperson). You can also find us on Facebook and Flickr.