KOZHIKODE: The stage was set aflame with gyrating moves of Kuchipudi from Sunu babu earning a raving response from the glued audience. Amidst the sea of people was Anu, mother of Sunu babu, murmuring silent notes of prayers with eyes kept closed. Sunu has been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes for a long and performed with an insulin pump attached to her body. She has been restricted from performing on stage but the young talent couldn't give away her love for dance and defeated all odds to perform for a daring 15 minutes.

It all started in the form of a mild fever at the age of six. Since then her health descended to lows that forced her doctors to tell Sunu to stop performing. Never again her parents thought Sunu could wear Chilanka (musical anklet) on stage.

After the fifteen-minute-long dance, Sunu’s sugar level depleted to a scary 40 making spreading panic backstage. Sunu hails from Panthalam in the Pathanamthitta district.