‘Call Me Dancer’ review: Documentary highlights Manish Chauhan’s incredible talent, charm

Its creators Call Me Dancer The amazing talent Manish Chauhan is traveling from coast to coast to unveil the documentary about his struggles and triumphs. The film, directed by Leslie Champagne and Pip Gilmour, had its world premiere at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival on Thursday and opened the Camera Festival dance at New York’s Lincoln Center last night.

Call Me Dancer Document a young man who can perform backflips, keep ups, Thomas Flairs (a scissor floor move named for gymnast Kurt Thomas) or an incredible number of feats as if they required no effort. But her greatest achievement is rising from humble origins in Mumbai, India to rising acclaim on the world stage, a journey as difficult and impossible as pulling off her athletic or ballet tricks.

“In India, people think dance has no future,” Maneesh (pronounced mah-neesh) laments at the beginning of the film. He is the son and grandson of taxi drivers and to strive for anything beyond such a mundane existence requires an unusual degree of perseverance and self-confidence. It also requires overcoming the skepticism of his parents, who have made significant sacrifices to send Manish and his sister Madhu to college and see them both in regular paying jobs.

Fortunately, Manish has a few people firmly in his corner – his grandmother, who provides moral support, and ballet master Yehuda Maor, an Israeli ex-dancer who trains young aspirants at the Danceworks Performing Arts Academy in Mumbai. Admission to that school became a pivotal moment in Manish’s life. In the studio he encounters people with skills quite different from what he has achieved on the streets of Mumbai – a classical tradition that requires completely different training and musculature than what can be described as stunts.

“I don’t want to be an acrobat,” insists Manish. “I want to be a dancer. Call me a dancer.”

We are inspired to fulfill his dreams. It’s a classic underdog story – Manish entered the ballet scene very late by most optimists’ standards. Is he destined to get a contract with a dance company or return home in despair?

At this point in the narrative, another young dancer enters the frame – the prodigiously gifted Aamir who is seven years younger than Manish at 14 and seemingly on the fast track to a career as a principal dancer. Clever Judah sees the potential to develop a certain rivalry between dancers who recognize each other’s talent, driving them to reach their highest level. But when Yehuda showed a colleague at London’s Royal Ballet School a video of Amir in the studio, the young man was immediately offered a place at the school. The filmmakers note that they were no longer able to follow Aamir’s path as the school banned filming of their budding prowess.

Watching Manish and Aamir dance side by side in the studio, it’s clear that the boy has an indomitable grace and line that Manish can’t hope to achieve at such a late stage of development. She is devastated when Yehuda tells her she won’t make it in a classical ballet company. “You started too late.”

But Yehuda has a solution – Manish must study contemporary dance, where the range of his abilities can be put to good use. And she knows where to send him to train – the Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company in Gayton, Israel.

Pressure mounts on Manish – his parents pressure him to support the family and pay for his sister’s wedding. When Manish is offered a role in a fictional film based on the triangular relationship between him, Amir and Yehuda, he must choose between the earning potential and disappointing the kibbutz company, which does not want him to do it.

Manish chooses the character Still ballet (Julian Sands, the actor who recently disappeared while hiking Mount Baldy in California, plays a character based on Judah). A serious shoulder injury either sidelined Manish for a year due to the shooting of the film. Then the Covid pandemic interrupted the dreams and aspirations of performance artists everywhere.

Still, Manish would not surrender. “I can’t give up,” she says. “I love dancing and I will continue to dance.”

Call Me Dancer The film reaches to the heart through the hero’s archeological exploration and Manish Chauhan’s charm. Adding resonance to the cinematic experience is the affectionate relationship between Judah and his prize students. He is portrayed as an intimidating figure who teases his students and even hits some of them on the head when displeased. But her selflessness in supporting Manish turns her from a grizzly to a teddy bear. And it’s touching to see his passion as he admits that his role, like a parent, is to prepare Manish and others for success beyond the Danceworx walls.

The film’s biggest drawing point, naturally, is Manish’s dancing, who delivers a performance of stunning strength and agility with the joy of someone born to dance. She is also beautiful, which Judah mentions as one of her assets. Before an important solo performance, Manish chooses from among possible outfits to wear on stage; No wonder a colleague suggested he go shirtless. The traditional purpose of dance, especially in the classical realm, has been to celebrate aesthetic beauty, and this is something Manish has in many forms.

The film team includes executive producer Jay Sean, a renowned British singer-songwriter of Indian origin, along with EPs John Patrick King, Esther Van Messel and Jinit Hingorani. Producers are Priya Ramasubban, Cynthia Kane and Leslie Champagne. Champagne directs with Pip Gilmour.

Brilliant images by cinematographers Neil Barrett and Abhijit “Hojo” Dutt, who understand how to capture dancers on film, as well as the colorful, crowded streets of Mumbai. Jennifer Beman White is editor, Hemal Trivedi is consulting editor. Nainita Desai scored.