SURESH THAKUR is a powerhouse of energy. He tells PRAKRITI ROY about his unique style — the bone breaking dance — and how he is doing everything possible to become a famous dancer and choreographer
Suresh Thakur is a breathing example of how today’s youngsters try to push their boundaries. He is a 16-year-old dancer on a mission to perfect the art of ‘bone-breaking’. If you’re wondering that that’s an odd style of dancing and don’t quite know what it means, it means exactly how it sounds.
Suresh has mastered the art of twisting and turning his bones in every possible direction. Do not let his lean physique fool you as it is no testimony of his strength while doing street dancing. Recently, he appeared in auditions of So You Think You Can Dance (SYTYCD), India, on &TV. Although he didn’t get selected for the next round, he isn’t disappointed.
“I should keep trying, rightIJ My dance sir motivated me to try out. When everyone saw me on TV, I came home and got so many compliments. It was pretty great,” Suresh tells you. SYTYCD is not the only show which he has tried for. last year, he went for the India’s Got Talent auditions with his Incredible Dance Crew but they only made it to the TV round. Next, he has been called by Dance Plus on Star Plus for an audition and he has even decided that this time he will go with a female partner, a yoga specialist.
For someone who is just 16, Suresh has a very packed schedule. A Class IX student at Vijay Public School, Ghaziabad, his classes start at 6.30 am and go on till 10 am. After that he comes home, has a meal and goes for his dance practice, his first session for the day. “We practice for an hour in the morning. Then I go home, have lunch and go for my Science and Maths tuitions. In the evening, we practice for about three more hours,” he tells you. That, of course, doesn’t leave him any time for playing, “but who needs that if you get to dance all the time,” he says.
His teachers in school were so impressed by him that they urged him to continue studying at his current school which has classes only up to VIII standard. “My teachers insisted I continue studying there. So they tied up with another school and I am continuing IX and X there. There are only four of us in Class IX,” he reveals.
Suresh has been learning dance for only about a year-and-a-half. He recalls that before he started taking classes, his brother had once asked him to perform at some family function when he had not felt confident enough. However, a few days after that, his older brother saw him dancing and realised his potential. “Bhai asked me if I wanted to learn dance. I said yes and he got me enrolled in the academy for a fee of Rs500 per month. Now, I am the second best dancer there. The best is my friend Vicky,” he says.
It was only after he joined the class that his dance teacher introduced him to bone breaking. Training only got him some discipline, but the flexibility in his body was natural. So, when he joined the classes, it was only a matter of time before he was absorbed into their performing crew. With each of the eight dancers having their own unique strength and style, they are all planning to try out individually for Dance Plus. Suresh tells you that they got an audition call for Shine of India dance show on Channel V but they did not go as there was money involved.
He is quite sure that he can pick up any dance style owing to his immense flexibility. “I know I can do forms like contemporary because I am so flexible. Moreover, dance is the only thing I want to do,” he says. Suresh’s father, who is a contractor in a garments factory in Noida, suggests that a Government job would be a good option for him. Suresh says that he will definitely heed his father’s suggestion and will try to get a Government job.
For now, he dreams only of becoming a choreographer of repute.