Happy Feet

Sooni Taraporevala’s Netflix debut, Yeh Ballet, dramatises the journey of two male ballet dancers pursuing their unconventional passion, finds Rajashree Balaram

- Rajashree Balaram

Manish Chauhan folds his hands in an earnest namaste, complete with a slight bow, when he greets me in the middle of a photo shoot. The 26-year-old has a spare build, shy eyes and a wide smile. It’s the kind of smile that makes you marvel at his dewy, taut cheekbones— much like the luscious apples found in the orchards of Himachal Pradesh where Chauhan’s ancestral house is, a cherished retreat for his annual vacations. He speaks of his village softly, in an endearing mix of chaste Hindi and faltering English, sometimes unintentionally rolling his R’s—a remnant of his scholarship stint with the Oregon Ballet Theatre in Portland, USA.

Son of a Mumbai taxi driver, Chauhan cannot quite let go of incredulity when he dwells over the dramatic arc of his life. “In my wildest fantasies, I would not have imagined a film based on my life, let alone getting the chance to act out my own story in a Sooni Taraporevala film.”