Miracle of the mind

Bibhuti Mishra reports on a dancer who rose above tragedy to stage a grand comeback

Sudha Chandran had done it years back. And the film Nache Mayuri was a tribute to the miracle she wrought in her own life by making a comeback to stage as a dancer after losing one leg in an accident.

Nityananda Das’ story is eerily similar. He lost his right leg in a road accident five years back at the peak of his career as a dancer-choreographer. Everything seemed bleak for the moment. But his spirits had not died and his guru, Bimbadhar Das, came forward to keep them alive. "If Sudha Chandran could do it, so can you," he told Nityananda and thus began a saga of grit and determination that had its high point recently when with just one leg Nityananda returned to the stage and mesmerised the audience with his terpsichorean skills.

Hailing from Bideipur in Bhadrak, Nityananda had started learning dance almost two decades back. In 1991 he came to Bhubaneswar to be groomed as an Odissi dancer and learnt under the tutelage of Guru Bimbadhar Das and Guru Gangadhar Pradhan of Orissa Dance Academy. He soon blossomed into a dancer of rare talent and stamina. He turned a choreographer and choreographed for the jatra teams in the state. That proved lucrative and all seemed to be going well when he met with a unfortunate accident. On that fateful June 11 in 2000 he was going on his newly purchased motor bike from Bhubaneswar to Bhadrak when it collided head on with a speeding truck. His life was saved but his right leg could not be.

After six months in the hospital, when he returned home his world seemed to have fallen in a shambles. The talented dancer and the successful choreographer for opera parties seemed to be no more. But Nityananda was made of sterner stuff and he had his guru Bimbadhar to boost his self-confidence. He decided to rise Phoenix-like and practised hard to build his balance and stamina.

"It was very tough. But I fell back on my experience as a dancer and my guru had convinced me that with hard work and determination nothing is impossible."

The Puranas say with God’s grace Pangu langhayate giri/ mukam karoti bachalam (The lame scales mountains and the dumb turns voluble). Surely, God was smiling on Nityananda. Interestingly, on his comeback effort at Rabindra Mandap, Bhubaneswar, recently he presented Pangu langhayate giri, an item choreographed by ace dancer Guru Naba Mishra who also had been a great moral support for Nityananda. The jam-packed house sat stunned as Nityananda danced to perfect Odissi rhythm, executing mudras and presenting mimetic prowess effortlessly. Unlike Sudha Chandran, he had no artificial leg fixed. Therefore, he literally danced with one leg, moving the audience to rapture.

After the show, when the people lined up to congratulate him, a beaming Nityananda thanked God and said, "I am glad that I am back to what I love most ie dance. I dedicate my life to it."

Nityananda has set up a dance institution, Kalasharam, in Bhubaneswar where hundreds of students learn dance from him. He explains the mudras to them and uses hands to explain the footwork.

Nityananda refused the financial assistance that was offered to him by friends and well-wishers in the wake of the accident. A man of self-esteem, he chose to earn his living again. Loath to live on charity, he began accepting professional assignments from opera parties and is back doing choreography for them and earning a living. He also teaches students at his village. With dance becoming his passion and profession again, the tragedy in his life has been pushed to the distant past. Says Bimbadhar Das in an emotion-choked voice, "He was always a dancer of excellence.

Therefore, it was a shock when he lost his right leg. However, I knew that he could come out of this tragedy. We often discussed how Sudha Chandran had overcome her handicap. Nityananda had the courage and he was willing to put in hard work and be patient. The result is there for all to see today.

HOME