Imagining choreography as a dissident social practice in contemporary dance in India.

This article examines *The Secular Project*, a choreographic work and digital archive created by queer Sikh choreographer Mandeep Raikhy in 2020 as a form of corporeal dissent against rising majoritarian nationalism and religious fundamentalism in India. Inspired by historic anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests, the project uses dance performances and social media posts to explore how secularism—understood as a constitutional value of equality and non-discrimination—is embodied, enacted, and reimagined by citizens in both public and private spaces. Through ethnographic research and choreographic analysis, the work highlights the dancing body as a mode of political resistance that challenges dominant cultural narratives and fosters collective engagement with secular democratic ideals amid India’s shifting political landscape. The project also interrogates the complex history of Indian secularism, its intersections with caste and religion, and proposes new ritualistic, embodied practices to sustain secularism beyond state control.