Feet of a dancer, soul of a fighter

Sudha Chandran. Pics/Facebook, Instagram

Celebrating the everyday women heroes is the idea behind Tum Ho Naa - Ghar Ki Superstar, hosted by Rajeev Khandelwal. Who better than Sudha Chandran to feature in the game show? The actor and dancer, who became one of the leading proponents of Bharatanatyam despite losing her right leg to an accident, recently shot for the episode in which she reflected on her journey.

Proud that her life story is taught as a lesson in courage to students in Indian schools, she said, "I may be a heroine on screen, but being a heroine in real life is what fills me with pride."

Rajeev Khandelwal

Chandran recalled the May 1981 accident that caused gangrene in her foot. The dancer, 15 then, was told in the operation theatre that her leg would have to be amputated. Even as she consented to the decision, she knew that she'd return to the world of dance.

Three years later, she returned to the stage with the Jaipur Foot, a specialised prosthetic limb. "The doctor who treated me asked, ‘How did you dance?' When I said that he had told me I could do it, he said, ‘When I met you, I couldn't bring myself to say no, so I said yes.' That unintended yes became the turning point in my life."