When you think of a Bharatnatyam dancer, you think of a woman with a big bindi, beautiful kohl-lined eyes, draped in a bright Kanjivaram saree and jewellery. Charles Ma breaks those stereotypes. Born and raised in Bangalore, he’s a Bharatnatyam dancer of mixed Northeast Indian, Nepalese, and ethic Chinese heritage. Here, Charles shares from his home in Bangalore, growing up in a boarding school environment mired in toxic masculinity and facing racism in his field.