Each human being has a dream and prays to god to make his dream come true. Some dream of becoming a cricketer like Sachin Tendulkar and some dream of visiting the Disney land. Some want to become very rich and many of them want to come first in class. I too had many big and small dreams out of which many came true and many were still dreams.

My parents often used to tell me that I loved music and dance since I was a baby. I used to sleep listening to songs in the cradle as my mother used to put a tape recorder near my cradle. As I grew up I started to move along with the music.

I was born with a spinal disorder so was unable to walk so dance was just impossible. Whenever we attended parties and weddings I used to dance from my wheel chair along with the others. Initially I was uncomfortable but all my loved ones encouraged me and I confidently started dancing in groups and our apartment functions .people started encouraging me and I enjoyed it. All this was good but in my heart I always wanted to learn dancing and perform on stage. I used to always think about it before sleeping and then dream about it.

It was in 2006. We had gone to Rourkela for Anajali, as I was going to win the Anjali Award. I saw differently abled people dancing and my wish to dance started growing. As soon as we reached Bhubaneswar I told my parents about my secret wish and they were very encouraging but we were not sure what to do. I was scared that people will laugh at me or make fun of me. Nobody will teach me. But I was wrong. My parents took me to my Guru Nityanand Dash, who readily agreed after taking my test. He was very happy to know that I dared to think impossible and promised to teach me Odissi dance. I was thrilled and could not sleep that night.

The journey and hard work had just begun. I had to practice a lot and wait for my teacher. I had to learn the theory as well as the dance. My sir had to make new steps for me. The best thing about it was all helped me and nobody made fun of me. After a year of hard work that day finally came when I was to perform on stage for the first time. My costume was specially stitched in my favorite color combination yellow and red. The practice was going on and I was very nervous and scared about my performance. I was worried about people’s reaction to my attempt.

The evening of 28th December 2008 finally arrived. I put my dance costume for the first time and my parent’s and I had tears of joy in our eyes. We reached the venue with tension in our hearts. My guru then put Ghungroos on my feet with a ritual and my mother started crying. I spoke to my grandmother in Pune on the phone and she too was crying. The makeup was done and my name was announced.

I was taken to the stage and the music started. My hair stood up. The song began and I forgot everything and began to perform. I could not see anything but went on performing. As soon as my dance finished I got a standing ovation and about a hundred hugs. All were crying and my parent’s eyes were red with tears. All were praising my performance and crying with me with joy.

We came home and again had a round of emotional discussion and crying session. I could not sleep that night. The next morning all the newspapers had published about my performance and I was thrilled and relieved that all welcomed my impossible dream and attempt.

I will never forget the pride and joy in the eyes of my parents after my performance. I was happy that I did not let them and my guru down. I thank god to help me fulfill my dream. Now my next dream is to give a performance in Dance India Dance do not want to be a part of the competition but want to perform once on that stage.

God, are you listening?