Dance Like A Man: Sanjay Khatri

2 min read

Thinking of ballet would probably remind of leotards, perfect moves and pretty women with slender bodies. But here we bring you Sanjay Khatri, the boy who choose to do ballet.

‘I did not choose ballet but ballet choose me’

The young man hailing from Narela, who once helped his Grandfather with his farms, is now the founder of Central Contemporary Ballet, a school dedicated to quality ballet training.

However, ballet was not always what he planned to do. When in college he was inclined towards acting and modeling. Life took a turn when he auditioned for a ballet academy that took him in. This was the first time Khatri was exposed to the art form and it would be rather apt to say that he got seduced by it.

 Khatri even in his wildest dreams would not have imagined that the audition he took up for this ballet club would eventually bring him the fame of being the first Indian male ballet.

Unlike most Western performers who begin their training in ballet even before they hit puberty, Khatri joined at the ripe of 20, but this never came out as a limitation for him. He trained for 8 years, with an aim to make an International career.

The journey undertaken by Khatri was not the easiest.

‘It was the time when we didn’t have high-speed internet on phones, I used to spend hours watching International performers perfect my moves. Ek video ko kam se kam 200 baar dekhna padhta tha’

Success did not come easy for him, but nevertheless, he managed to make a mark in the world of ballet.

 As a young man who took up a rather delicate dance form was often misunderstood by many. ‘Log kehte they yeh toh ladkiyon ki karne wali cheez he’

 Many felt that dancing, particularly something like ballet was not something to be taken up by men, but Sanjay was adamant and dedicated to his art. ‘I was lucky to have my mother’s support, he mentions.

Besotted by ballet, this young man took the road less taken fighting against stereotypes to be the boy who did ballet. Today he is one of the finest male ballet in India to have performed with the International companies.

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