Dr. Subodh Mallik and his wife Anita Mallik were originally going to be on Dancing with the West Texas Stars in 2020.
The pandemic had other ideas.
Now, three years later, the husband and wife team who have lived in Odessa for over a decade now, will be taking part in this year’s Dancing with the West Texas Stars.
The event will take place at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at the Ector Theatre.
The fundraiser benefits the Crisis Center of West Texas and the mission to end domestic and sexual violence.
Dancing with the West Texas Stars is an evening of performances by 10 local stars partnered with talented professional dancers from the community.
Subodh and Anita are both excited for the opportunity to compete this year.
“I think it’s great,” Subodh said. “I think it’s a perfect opportunity to combine our passion for dancing and love for the social work and help out for an awesome cause for the Crisis Center of West Texas to raise funds and their mission of ending domestic and sexual violence. We’re passionate about that cause. We’ve been supporting crisis center. It lines up with that.”
Anita echoed those thoughts.
“It’s for a great cause for the women in crisis,” Anita said. “I always like to do things for social causes. I love the cause and I like to help them.”
Subodh was born in Nepal.
He married Anita in Nov. 1996 and the couple soon moved to New York where Subodh completed his internal medicine residency.
The Malliks then moved to Fort Stockton in 1998 where Subodh started his first job as an internist.
In 2011, they moved to Odessa. Subodh moved his hospital work to Ward Memorial Hospital in 2018 where Anita also serves as a nurse.
But throughout their lives, the Malliks have enjoyed dancing together, whether it was at weddings or other events.
“We started dancing in social events. We danced at different weddings for our friends,” Subodh said. “Then, we started getting invited to dance on the stage at Horseshoe Arena for the Diwalli program.”
In 2021, when celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary, they devoted one evening towards raising funds for the Crisis Center of West Texas as they created a show called “A Bollywood Wedding.”
The show combines singing and dancing and has since expanded to include a second performance in Odessa and a performance in Houston.
“We took that tour to places like Houston and we’ve done a few programs here at the Globe Theatre,” Subodh said. “That’s our background.”
In 2021, Subodh began his term as president of the Hindu Association of West Texas.
He is also a board member in America Nepal Medicine Foundation (ANMF).
He is also a member of the Social Association of Professional Nepali in America.
Subodh and Anita originally wanted to take part in Dancing with the West Texas Stars after seeing some of their friends compete in the 2019 edition.
“After that, I called the Crisis Center and asked to participate,” Subodh said. “We have danced on other stages around the country and the Bolly Program which is a part of the Hindu Association of West Texas. It’s been in our system of utilizing that for social causes.”
The couple talked about how they compliment each other on the dance floor.
“Anita is a singer,” Subodh said. “She brings that to the table and I’m a dancer. I have learned to sing and she has learned to dance. It’s been a lot of fun. We usually spend two to four weeks preparing. That’s also fun and it’s a real bonding activity.”
The two will dance to a few songs that the audience should be well-familiar with.
“Us not being professional dancers, we picked a very well-known track and a combination of songs like ‘Tonight, I’m Loving You’ and ‘Love Me Like You Do.’ You have to do it right. Everyone’s going to expect you to move in that rhythm and that’s why our instructors have come in handy. They put in that professional touch and helped with the flaws that we have. It’s been fun.”
In preparing for Dancing with the West Texas Stars, Anita and Subodh have been practicing twice a week at Love to Dance Studio over on John Ben Shepperd Parkway.
Anita and Subodh have three children. They talked about the challenges of balancing work and home life while also finding time to prepare for Dancing with the West Texas Stars.
“Our goal is to do it right,” Anita said. “(Subodh) has a busy work schedule and I’m a busy mom with a busy schedule. We try to find time to rehearse. Like Wednesdays, he does light work. We make time to go to the gym. We take it from our sleep time.”
The two have since built up a fan base in the community from their other dancing performances.
“That’s why they call me a star, right?” Subodh said while laughing. “We have a lot of friends and family members. There is a big fan base and they’re also looking forward to coming out as well. We would also like to invite the community to come to this event as well. We urge people to buy their tickets.”
While they hope to win, they also know the competition is for a good cause.
“It started out as our goal to win and it still is since it is a competition,” Subodh said. “But the main point is to raise as much funds as possible for the crisis center.”
For more information on Dancing with the West Texas Stars and how to donate, go to tinyurl.com/dv45zec7.
If you go
>> What: Dancing with the West Texas Stars.
>> When: 7:30 p.m. Feb. 4.
>> Where: Ector Theatre and Odessa Marriott Hotel and Conference Center.
>> Where to purchase tickets: tinyurl.com/ye2b56an
