Dancing over life’s lemons

Wayanad-native Swaroop Janardhanan is an amputee dancer, model and bodybuilder. Yes, you read that right! Here is his inspiring story
Dancing over life’s lemons

KOCHI: As the beats of ‘Ghungroo’ from the Bollywood movie ‘War’ lights up the dance floor, he lets loose and allows his dancing ‘foot’ to take over. You read it right. Wayanad-native Swaroop Janardhanan is an amputee dancer, model and bodybuilder, and a proud one at that. Less than three months after he lost his left leg in a tragic accident, Swaroop, decided that he is not one to wallow in self-pity. He got back to what he loves most —dancing—and his videos with his own studio ‘Rhythm Wayne Dance Crew’ on his YouTube channel ‘Swaroop Janardhanan’ have gone viral.

The former Kudumbashree staffer had his eyes on showbusiness. Cinema was his ultimate dream. Dance, modelling and bodybuilding were supposed to be the stepping stones to reach the same. Swaroop was even a part of actor Rahul Madhav’s dance troupe at FEFKA. “My world turned upside down  on February 8, 2020, when a vehicle that came from the opposite side changed tracks and rammed into my bike. Wayanad, unfortunately, has no efficient multispeciality hospitals, a bane for several like me.

I was admitted to a hospital in Kozhikode. Medical negligence at the facility made me seek treatment at a hospital in Coimbatore where they conveyed that my left leg was completely infected, and had to be amputated from the knee. The news was earth-shattering and probably the only time I screamed my lungs out,” said the 29-year-old.

Doctors and family members tried cheering up Swaroop with motivational videos which were of no avail, as Swaroop is a no-nonsense person. “I told the doctors to go ahead with the amputation instead of the preceding pity. When I reached home after a month, my pet dogs ran towards me searching for my other leg. The sight was unbearable,” said Swaroop.

The MBA graduate wanted to get back on his ‘foot’, as quickly as possible. He did a photoshoot in May and practised day and night to perfect dancing on his right leg, sans crutches. The photoshoot gained widespread attention and the dance videos astonished viewers. “The videos gave me a lot of a reach. Balancing is a massive predicament with just one foot.

Dancing on the same requires patience and vitality. But then, the challenges didn’t bog me down as my passions gave me a certain high that nothing else could. My family added to it. ‘Ghungroo’ was the first dance video I uploaded after my accident,” he said.  Have his dreams changed? “Not at all. I believe there was a reason I overcame the unfortunate accident and a near-death experience at the hospital. I’m currently looking at the possibility of artificial limbs to make my life easier. Nevertheless, I shall focus on building my body to adapt to my current circumstance and work around it. Cinema is my final destination and I will jump in, with one foot,” he concludes.

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