New Delhi: The history of alienation of the Northeast from mainland India is a long one. Repeated insurgencies have focussed on what they allege New Delhi’s oppressive policies.

The prejudices are not limited to the political field alone. People from the region often complain of biases in different walks of life. Even in the metros, lack of awareness and prejudices have built invisible walls between the people from the Northeast and those from other parts of India.

But not for the young generation. Today, they are out to defy the stereotypes of Northeast's isolation and confidently step into India's mainstream life.

From the corporate sector to the glamour world, people from the Northeast are increasingly making their presence felt. Gone are the days of alienation and insecurity. Today, they want to make the nation dance to their beats.

Among many such bravehearts, Kaytee Namgyal is one who has been trying to make people take his generation seriously.

It might seem like fun, but for the 27-year-old young man from Sikkim, dance is his life. The proud director of the Salsa Dance Company, the only one of its kind in India, Kaytee has opened his institute in more than four cities across the country.

Kaytee looks a happy man. But behind his broad smile lay a long, sustained struggle to create an identity for himself.

Says Kaytee: "From outside, I am happy. But it was quite a struggle to educate myself. It’s all in the music, culture."

In a busy corner of South Delhi, Zubeni and Amrit are busy dressing up the city in trendy clothes. They get 'Cheap Thrills' out of this job. For, the two qualified media professionals from Nagaland and Sikkim are out to live their dreams in the capital and prove a point.

Says Amrit Sharma, Managing Director of Cheap Thrills: "They have these notions that they are fast. We are loose and lazy. I had to prove them wrong."

Zubeni Lotha, also Managing Director of Cheap Thrills, adds: "They think I am a salesgirl. I am OK with that. They can't imagine I own this place."

Kaytee doesn't think being from the Northeast can be any disadvantage. "If you know you are good at something, you will go ahead in life. I am a person from the Northeast, I can't do it...that's a loser's excuse," he explains.

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