Dancing with your Hands
Posted by Aarti on September 20th, 2010 . Filed under: Uncategorized .Next time I’m bored, I’m going to do a little hand jig.
From Up and Over It, an Irish duo who are exploring new ways to experience traditional Irish dancing. Love it!
-x-
aarti
September 20th, 2010 at 10:19 am
Awesome! I can’t decide if it’s dance or percussion. Probably both!
September 20th, 2010 at 10:29 am
haha thats amazing, this made me smile and made my day too
Thanks for posting!
September 20th, 2010 at 11:01 am
Awesome ! That was Coooool
September 20th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
The hand dancing was way cool, but I have to admit that the dancers’ dead-pan expressions throughout was really creepy. I’d have enjoyed it more if they’d have let life and joy show on their faces …
September 20th, 2010 at 2:04 pm
That was awesome. How about doing that on your next show!
September 20th, 2010 at 2:50 pm
How coooooooool!!!! you could tell that they were consentrating REALLY hard.
September 20th, 2010 at 3:26 pm
i totally LOVE this… i put it on my facebook when i saw it last week. isn’t it amazing?! seriously.. i wanna make up a finger dance now.
September 20th, 2010 at 3:29 pm
okay… also.. i just watched it again with my 19 month old… he was mesmerized and laughing like crazy and trying to imitate them.. heck YES, my baby is COOL.
September 20th, 2010 at 7:36 pm
This is seriously fun. I’m forwarding the link to all my artsy friends. But seriously, Aarti, when are you going to get the chance to be bored in the near future? Picked up for a second season!!! Yay!!!
September 20th, 2010 at 7:57 pm
Oh Aarti – I think you’re so awesome and this journey you’re on is so designed for you by God Himself. Thank you for living your faith and helping me overcome a super bad 1st experience with Indian food! I’m willing to try again because you are leading so gently incorporating what is so foreign and “yucky” to me into what I know so that in time, I can separate the two and find I love Indian food after all. God bless you! PS I know you live in the LA area, too. Would you mind sharing where you shop for herbs and spices? THANKS!
September 20th, 2010 at 8:03 pm
Amazing. Thanks for sharing that groovy vid!
Totally loving your show and VERY excited to hear you’ve been picked up for another season! Long live Aarti Party!
September 20th, 2010 at 9:23 pm
That’s funny! thanks for sharing Aarti. Loves your show and congratz again for winning the next food network star! I never missed an episode of it!
September 21st, 2010 at 5:18 am
Had to repost this to Facebook it’s awesome. And in other news, I bought cinnamon sticks yesterday so I could make my own Chai tea at home. You are so inspiring!
September 21st, 2010 at 10:14 am
Aarti – love your blog and love your infectious personality on your show!!! Congratulations!!! I featured your Pea-lafel on my blog today – http://www.athreadfromtheedge.blogspot.com. They have become my new favorite falafel recipe! I’m really looking forward to trying more of your recipes.
September 21st, 2010 at 10:16 am
Dear Aarti,
I couldn’t think of any other way to reach you, but I feel compelled to write and tell you about the wonderful impact you had on my brother Jonathan.
Jonathan was diagnosed with leukemia on May 30, 2010, and left our arms and passed into those of the Lord on September 18, 2010. He would have been 13 tomorrow.
Rooting for you on the Next Food Network Star and watching the first few episodes of Aarti Party were things that Jonathan looked forward to every week. A great lover of food and a particularly adventurous eater, he loved watching you create your enticing Indian cuisine. One of our pastors planned to make him the chocolate ginger pudding pie that he said looked so delicious, but unfortunately he was never able to enjoy it.
Every night he was sick, we said the Lord’s prayer with Jonathan in the hospital, and then each family member thanked God aloud for the day’s blessings. You are one of the things that we are thankful for, and Aarti Party is mentioned in Jonathan’s obituary as one of his favorite shows (along with Globe Trekker!).
I wanted to thank you for helping to make the life of a suffering child better. Your wit, your charm, your grace, and gentle nature made you and Jonathan kindred spirits, although you did not know it.
“But Jesus called the children to him and said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.’ ”
-Luke 18:16
With love and hope,
Natalie Soud
Sister of Jonathan Soud
nata...@gmail.com
September 21st, 2010 at 2:41 pm
Dear Aarti,
I couldn’t think of any other way to reach you, but I feel compelled to write and tell you about the wonderful impact you had on my brother Jonathan.
Jonathan was diagnosed with leukemia on May 30, 2010, and left our arms and passed into those of the Lord on September 18, 2010. He would have been 13 tomorrow.
Rooting for you on the Next Food Network Star and watching the first few episodes of Aarti Party were things that Jonathan looked forward to every week. A great lover of food and a particularly adventurous eater, he loved watching you create your enticing Indian cuisine. One of our pastors planned to make him the chocolate ginger pudding pie that he said looked so delicious, but unfortunately he was never able to enjoy it.
Every night he was sick, we said the Lord’s prayer with Jonathan in the hospital, and then each family member thanked God aloud for the day’s blessings. You are one of the things that we are thankful for, and Aarti Party is mentioned in Jonathan’s obituary as one of his favorite shows (along with Globe Trekker!).
I wanted to thank you for helping to make the life of a suffering child better. Your wit, your charm, your grace, and gentle nature made you and Jonathan kindred spirits, although you did not know it.
“But Jesus called the children to him and said, ‘Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.’ ” -Luke 18:16
With love and hope,
Natalie Soud
Sister of Jonathan Soud
natalie dot soud at gmail dot com
September 21st, 2010 at 5:19 pm
Hi Arti,
first i must say congrats of being a winner.We need some indian flair on the food network and you were great!
next,i cannot believe you were a reporter in fargo north dakota,grew up in dubai and have indian parents.we have a lot in common.I am from Goa,India then grew up in dubai and after getting married,moved around but have now settled in Fargo,North Dakota.I would so love to meet you in person.If you ever plan to visit back,please email me loue...@yahoo.com.
looking forward to meeting you or your reply.
hugs,Louella.
September 21st, 2010 at 8:18 pm
Dear Aarti,
Congrats on your win and, your second season. Hooray!
LOVE the UP and Over it clip and just a heads up to folks who wonder – traditional irish dancers do NOT show emotions on their face. The style of the dance is that you look forward and let your feet – and your hands – do the talking. So nothing creepy about the video to me, just surprising fun : )
September 22nd, 2010 at 5:55 am
Jonathan’s obituary:
http://obits.dignitymemorial.com/dignity-memorial/obituary.aspx?n=Jonathan-Soud&lc=2317&mid=4383981
September 22nd, 2010 at 10:28 am
That is amazing, I am so glad I found your blog, worth searching for! I loved the makeup lesson too!
September 22nd, 2010 at 10:55 am
OK. I have been a HUGE FAN since the first episode of FNS this season and have been routing for you ever since. For two main reasons…1)You seem very genuine and 2)Your food always looked amazing and I want to learn to cook it!
So I made the pistachio dressing and the Ugly Duckling salad for a dinner party I was going to. The dinner my sister-in-law cooked was so FAB…but do you know who go the most kudos that day? YOU! I repeated at least a dozen times where to find the salad and dressing recipe. I think I saw people actually sticking their fingers in the bits and puddles of leftover salad dressing on their plate. Those are my kind of people! Thank you for a great recipe and for a fantastic show. I have Tivo’d every episode! So excited about the second season. BTW–love this last post. It’s always good to remind ourselves about our numerous blessings even in the thick of a meltdown. I am a newbie blogger and would love for you to check it out in all your spare time (note sarcasm pls).
September 22nd, 2010 at 11:51 am
Ok, that’s really cool …. but, it looks like it could get painful!
September 22nd, 2010 at 12:37 pm
Hi, Aarti!
I am looking forward to seeing your new shows. I think you are courageous and I appreciate your authenticity. I wanted to share one of my passions with you. I love coconut oil and coconut products especially after I read a book called “The Coconut Oil Miracle” written by Bruce Fife, C.N., N.D. Coconut oil has so many health benefits. Did you know it kills any lipid coated bacteria or virus? And that coconut flour is gluten free? Dr. Fife has written a cookbook called “Cooking with Coconut Flour. I hope you get a chance to check his work. Congratulations again on your achievements!
September 23rd, 2010 at 12:30 am
Hi Aarti!
Love your show. Your joy in cooking and creating really comes through. I’m so glad I can anticipate another season, hopefully the second of MANY more.
My daughter was an Irish dancer; when learning new choreography, the dancers often “hand dance” or “finger dance” to get the steps into their heads before they try them with their feet. “Up and over” is a description used by many teachers for a particular step in Irish dance, so “Up and Over It” is a great name for these two world-renowned dancers who have taken their amazing talents to another–very updated–level. Very fun video for a mom who listened to a lot of accordian music for a lot of years of lessons and competitions–thanks for the link.
September 23rd, 2010 at 5:59 am
So……. cool.I love Irish dancing and this is just another great creative way to enjoy it.You are right totally something cool to do if you bored i.e. if you can master those complex hand movements.Thanks a lot for posting
September 23rd, 2010 at 11:48 am
Aarti, where do I begin. I have been following you since day one of TNFNS and I called you out as the WINNER from the very beginning! You just had that IT factor that made you stand out in front of everyone!
Yet when you started to talk about your insecurities and feelings…I saw myself AS you. I too love food – so much so that I went to culinary school after college..yet now I work as a server not a chef. I love to cook, but I imagine not being as good as you or other people who do what we do for a living. I am WELL aware of my short falls (the devil is all too happy to remind me!) and I let them hold me back.
And to look at you now. You are on FOOD NETWORK! To know that you had or have negative thoughts creep into you head from time to time (THE SAME AS MINE) and to see that you were able to conquer them and win, well you are definately a mentor, friend and culinary teacher to me. I feel that if we knew each other we would be good friends.
I too want to start a food blog, have a cookbook and God knows what else! I love how you talk about your faith. It’s good to know that there are people out there who know a blessing when they see it.
I don’t know if you will ever read my post or respond to (’cause you are OBVIOUSLY BUSY). But I want to say a big ‘ol THANK YOU Aarti for sharing who you are and the food that comes from that!
P.S,
I too have wanted to read the Bible from cover to cover (as oppose to picking out scriptures to read). You have just inspired me to do just that! Too bad we can’t have Bible study together! Maybe someday – THAT would be trip!
Xoxo and Blessings,
Culinaire Kim
September 23rd, 2010 at 6:34 pm
Dear Aarti,
Hello, lovely person! I am so glad that you are keeping up with your blog in the midst of your wonderful new adventures. I have to thank you for this particular post, it made me smile after a long day. You manage to find very interesting, inspiring things to share. What a gift!
I’ve been enjoying your series and am very glad that you’ve been picked up for a second season. I would have been surprised if you hadn’t been.
Best of luck with your new ice cream maker. Hopefully you will find time to test out the ginger ice cream recipe – and improve upon it
Question for you… have you ever considered an Indian twist on macaroni & cheese? I was pondering that today. Would it be a cardamom dish? Just curious, but then, I always am.
Hope you are well and taking good care of yourself.
Best regards,
Victoria (of Boston)
September 25th, 2010 at 2:36 pm
Aarti,
I’m happy that I found your YouTube channel and blog before the food network star stuff hit so I don’t feel like I’m jumping on a bandwagon
So, I liked you (and started making your food!) before you were “famous” 
I noticed something wonderful on the food network site that I wanted to call your attention to. The comments all say “I made this dish…” “watching the show made me want to try this and it turned out great!”
About a year ago I read a piece talking about Julia Child and what a cultural revolution her cookbooks and show brought about….she inspired people to cook at a time when the food industry was declaring 1) you can’t cook and 2) its completely dull, drudgery, and why would you want to anyway? Just buy a box and “just add water.” But in the years since, cooking shows are geared less towards inspiring people to cook, and more towards inspiring them to eat. But YOUR shows (I’m including your YouTube show, which inspired me to cook!) are resurrecting the creative and inspirational joy that Julia communicated to folks a generation ago. And it makes me happy.
Thanks. Who knows–perhaps you’ve been put into the world for such a time as this! (I think, yes!)
Off to enjoy some Aarti-inspiried samosas (I did your samosa pastry recipe with 1/2 white-whole-wheat flour and it turned out alright–a little stiff, but good flavor) Peace to you!
September 26th, 2010 at 9:58 am
I love your show, the recipes, your look and personailty.
My one criticsm and it holds true for many of the Food Network chefs and cooks, why do you sample your food over top of the food your are going to ultimately serve. That is really disgusting. Even though you have me hooked on your program I was so disappointed that I had to turn away.
September 26th, 2010 at 8:14 pm
Love this blog entry! I can sooo relate
Thanks, Aarti!
September 26th, 2010 at 9:59 pm
That’s totally cool! I wonder if it hurts their hands?
October 2nd, 2010 at 10:50 am
Aarti I followed this years The Food Network Star… and I was consistently impressed and encouraged by your cooking. I love how town to earth you are with everyone and how you made everything thing you cooked so easily approachable. I’m Mexican decent and I love to incorporate different ethnic foods with my cooking. I love how yow always accomplish the marriage of different cultures. I wasn’t able to see your show after you won due to work and all. But as of this morning I saw as many as I could find on cable. I can’t wait to see your next show!
Keep bridging the gap with all cultures!
October 2nd, 2010 at 6:01 pm
Omg!! Your life is almost as crazy as my summer was!!!! Love ur show, love ur food, love you!!! please read my blog as you are my inspiration to blog! One day I will be a famous writer!
October 3rd, 2010 at 10:40 am
Dear Aarti,
I have never written to a food network personality before today. Loyal viewer of TFN. Would have been SO disappointed had you not won! I love to cook and you have made a new world of flavors accessible to me! Always DVR your show and will happily continue to do so for season two. Thanks and congratulations!
October 4th, 2010 at 10:30 am
Thanks for sharing this. What a fun video on this rainy NYC day!
October 5th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
Missing you, Aarti! You must be very busy now, maybe taping the new 2nd season shows. I really hope Food Network replays the six 1st season shows, or makes them available for purchase. Because of church, I only got to see two of them. No fancy-dandy video recording device for me to tape them to watch later, sigh!
Hope you keep explaining these new exotic herbs & good uses for them, like the way you explained hing. Write when you can, we’ll be waiting! I haven’t gotten any fenugreek yet, haven’t found it anywhere, & Ashland Ohio has way more Amish than Indian people living here, so we have no Indian store or gourmet store. But when I was up in Cleveland, I got a nice bag of green cardamom pods from an Indian store I found (Hallelujah!), & so I’ve been trying it in everything: grinding it up & putting it in coffee, substituting it whenever orange zest is called for, throwing it in chicken liver pate (yes, you would not believe how good it makes that stufff taste!), just because you had said it had an orange-y flavor & that gave me the courage to experiment! Even on top of vanilla ice cream! What a rush!
So, thank you for lending me your courage, & educating my palate & thereby my family’s palate. It hasn’t been the same old boring food around here ever since you appeared on The Next Food Network Star. You are teaching me how to cook with, as Bobby Flay put it when he praised your food, “Finally, some flavor!”
October 13th, 2010 at 12:18 pm
[...] THIS video makes me totally happy. I love [...]
October 14th, 2010 at 2:29 pm
Aarti! How adorable this video is! Love it. Thanks for sharing.
October 15th, 2010 at 6:34 pm
[...] I worked a whole pay period with not one single hour of sick or vacation time used and then watched this video. Decided I need to make one of my own. Put ad in paper for a videographer and an Irish Hand [...]
October 16th, 2010 at 5:55 am
Hi Aarti,
Not sure if you’re the one who left the comment on my blog post, however, if you are, I posted a comment also. It’s basically an apology. I felt terrible most of yesterday. Anyway, I had never seen your show before but I think you’ll have a new fan. You’re a classy gal. You could have really ripped into me and you didn’t. I’ll post a retraction…
Good luck in all you do.
Arti
October 17th, 2010 at 5:22 pm
I LOVE this video, thanks for sharing! I’ve watched it at the very least 7 times and I still am intreigued. One thing that makes my wonder..it looks/sounds like that would HURT! i’ve tried banging my hands around and for it to make that noise it hurts like heck! I wonder how they do it? PS. I rooted for you from the very first episode and I love your new show, another question, why is your new show Aarti Party? I love Paarti!
Sincerely,
Jennavive, a big fan!
November 8th, 2010 at 8:18 pm
You are an insiration! I am excited to break into the food industry. My company name is Peace of Cake Catering. 10% of all proffits are donated to http://www.worldpeace.org. Your blog is great, please feel free to follow me as well on the social networks listed below!!
Thanks,
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/West-Palm-Beach-FL/Peace-of-Cake-Catering/128675683853543
http://twitter.com/#!/Peace0fCake
http://peaceofcakecatering.blogspot.com/