The legless dancer who found fame and love

Vinod Thakur, a special needs youthwho shot to fame with his amazing performance on an Indian reality television show, says dance helped himfind love, riches and happiness. ByWahid Bukhari and Anand Raj OK

T he lights dim for a moment, the music rises to a crescendo and Vinod Thakur, dangling from a rope attached to the ceiling, shimmies down on stage. At first sight he appears to be sitting crosslegged on the floor, but a second later, he pushes himself up using his powerful arms and stands on his hands. It’s only then that the audience realises the 23-year-old has no legs and spontaneous applause erupts through the hall.

Vinod smiles then slowly lifts his right arm and, standing on just one hand, waves to the crowd. Whistles and shrieks of excitement resound. Vinod does a couple of cartwheels and flips, then bounces around all over the stage on his hands before ‘walking’ down a flight of stairs in step with the music. The crowd goes wild, but the performer is only warming up.

Balancing himself on one arm, he executes some amazing dance and acrobatic moves. His awe-inspiring performance would put an able-bodied dancer to shame. At the end of the fiveminute show, sweat pouring down his face, Vinod grins the audience gives him a standing ovation.

“I still can’t believe the life I’m living,’’ says the New Delhi resident after wrapping up another brilliant performance in India’s capital. “It’s just crazy. Barely a few years ago, I didn’t even have Rs1,000 [around Dh60] to my name. Now I’m a millionaire.”

Vinod has gained more than a healthier bank account. “I have a lovely house, I’m married to the love of my life and I’m travelling the world ,” he says.

Growing up in Bihar and later moving to Delhi with his family, he never dreamt that he would be able to dance with celebrities on stage as he was born with deformed legs.

“My parents were sad and thought I would never be able to move around or do anything,” he says. But, living with his family – father Raj Thakur, a truck driver, mother Urmila, 46, a homemaker and sister Reema, 17 – in a one-roomed house in Delhi, Vinod was determined to do well and make a mark in life. From the age of four, he learnt to walk on his hands and soon could walk as fast as his ablebodied friends. His family suggested he use prosthetics but Vinod, whose left leg ends at the knee and the right at the thigh, refused. “I did try using prosthetic limbs once, but found them difficult and uncomfortable,” he says. His former school teacher, Kamta Chopra, 62, who has known Vinod since he was three, had no doubts that he would be famous. He says, “He could race upstairs on his hands faster than his classmates. He was so positive and cheerful, and willing to work hard to better his life that I remember thinking at the time that this boy would make it big some day.”

And make it big he did. “I got my shot at fame when I appeared in India’s Got

‘Vinod was so positive and willing to work hard to better his life, that I knew he would make it big’