Success Of India¡¯s First And Much Loved Male Belly Dancer Shows How 2018 Shattered Stereotypes

Eshan Hilal, a 24-year-old belly dancer from Delhi, is a personification of shattering stereotypes and busting myths. Being a man, he is master of an art that is hard to believe by any strech of imagination, particularly when he performs that in India. Hilal, meaning moon, is a male belly dancer and with every single move he makes, he crushes the stereotypes that are associated with this magnificent art.

It takes immense amount of courage to question and shatter the norms and for Hilal picking belly dancing as a profession hasn¡¯t been a cakewalk. After finding fame and being touted from ¡®India¡¯s first male belly dancer¡¯ to ¡®India¡¯s most loved belly dancer¡¯, Hilal¡¯s career is growing in leaps and bounds.

But back home, ties are strained.

¡°2018 has been an amazing year. I got a call from Kalki Koechlin for ¡®My Indian Life¡¯ and I was told that I have become a talk of the town. For a normal Delhi guy like me, this was a big surprise. I never thought such big names from the Indian movie industry will take my name¡±, says an elated Hilal.

He tells Indiatimes that he is now being offered roles from Bollywood and television shows.

¡°I got an offer from Big Boss and a belly dancing festival, which is scheduled to be held in the US. But as of now, I don¡¯t want to get away from my dancing. Perhaps, in future, I will accept offers but this isn¡¯t the right time.¡±

Learning to stay away from the family

Fame comes at a price and Hilal is no exception.

For as long as he can remember, Hilal has loved dancing. During childhood, dancing to Bollywood songs was considered entertainment in the family, however, as he grew older, elders disapproved.

He has always been asked to behave like a boy and man up.

While family members objected, Hilal continued to learn dancing. His own family members called him names like ¡°bhand¡±, ¡°randi¡± and ¡°tawayaf¡± ¨C all words for prostitute. Even after making a name for himself, his family is still struggling to accept him the way he is.

Photo Courtesy: Eshan Hilal

¡°The more I am growing in my profession, the more I am getting away from my family. I need to work more in terms of personal bonding. But somewhere I am at peace because I am pursuing what I always wanted to do since childhood. And I am not doing anything wrong¡±, says Hilal.

In spite of everything, he chased his dream.

Hilal says that the people who used to mock him for his choice of clothing and his profession, now want to take selfies with him. ¡°I think it is just a matter of time that my family accepts me and understand the person that I am¡±.

Getting answers to the questions surrounding his sexuality

Breaking free from the manacles of masculinity, pulling up shirt in public, wearing shimmery skirts, donning stilettos and shaking his belly with subtlety, Hilal has smashed taboos, one torso movement a time. Growing up in a conservative Muslim family, he had to face many prohibitions. His family is a staunch believer in Islam and knows that their faith disapproves this way of life.

As if this mountain of stereotypes was not enough, there is another taboo that he fights in his daily life.

To some, Hilal might be mistaken for a bisexual, a transgender or a gay. He says he doesn¡¯t want to talk about his sexual orientation because it is not more important than his dance.

Photo Courtesy: Eshan Hilal

¡°I have seen my journey from being called a nachaniya to an artist. My sexuality is something that people should not talk about. My art is relevant, my sexual orientation, not. Just because I am wearing a skirt, doesn¡¯t mean I am liable to talk about my sexuality. This is something extremely personal. How difficult is it to focus on my art and talent? Does someone ask how a person feels being straight? I would love to talk about what I am doing in my dance studio than what I am doing in my bedroom.

The best part is that in a country like India there are girls who would like to have a boyfriend or a husband like me. I get proposals from girls on pictures where I am wearing a skirt and mehendi. So maybe we should talk about how our country is progressing, instead of discussing people¡¯s sexuality¡±, says Hilal.

More males embracing belly dance

After learning Kathak from the Lucknow Gharana, Hilal made a shift from the Indian classical form and moved into the complex torso and hipbone movement.

¡°Many people cautioned me to rethink my decision for pursuing belly dancing, because it makes me looks feminine. But you would be surprised to know the number of boys who send their videos of dancing to me. I get at least two to three videos from all over the world, especially Pakistan and Bangladesh. They tell me that they have similar story and share a common desire to perform.

"There are so many boys waiting for self-disclosure but they are afraid of the society and their family. Many share with me that they have told my story to their parents and then they came out of the closet,¡± he says.

Photo Courtesy: Eshan Hilal

Recalling one of the messages that he received, Hilal says: ¡°Once I received a message on my Instagram from a small-town Maharashtrian boy who was very tall and muscular and he wanted to pursue belly dancing. He requested me to help him out. In my head I had stereotyped the body image of a dancer. So at first, I thought this is some kind of joke. But then I understood that he is serious about becoming a belly dancer. That¡¯s when I started to guide him¡±.

Hilal says that this society will take some more time, may be another generation, to leave the binaries behind and accept fluidity. He wishes belly dancing to evolve as a profession here in India the way it is in Egypt and other middle-eastern countries.