Navillera tells the story of Shim Deok-chul (Park In-hwan), a 70-year-old retired mailman who decides to pursue his life-long dream of learning ballet, which does not please his family. At the dance academy, he meets Lee Chae-rok (Song Kang), a 23-year-old dancer who became interested in ballet after trying out different sports — his mother was a ballet dancer before she died of disease when he was young. He is struggling financially and thinks of giving up ballet until meeting Deok-chul, which changes his mind.
Sim Deok-chul's commitment to his dream inspires people with different genders, ages, and social status trying to achieve their dreams and do what makes them happy. The South China Morning Post states in their review of the series that "Navillera deals with relatable issues of old age, whether you're the one approaching it or your loved ones".[5]
A retiree who has just celebrated his 70th birthday. Seeing how his friends started to regret dreams they could not pursue in their younger age, he decided to try to fulfill his long-life dream of becoming a ballerino. He then meets Lee Chae-rok after accidentally seeing him practicing for his upcoming ballet competition.
A 23-year-old ballerino who is struggling financially and tries to support himself by working as a part-timer at a café. His deceased mother was a ballerina, whilst his father Lee Moo-young was in jail. His passion for ballet has started to fade away as he is having a hard time in living. Everything started to change slowly after he meets Shim Deok-chul.
Deok-chul's wife who cares a lot for her family. At first, she doesn't approve of her husband's ballet dreams. However, after seeing how passionate he is, she supports him.
Chae-rok's father who used to be a soccer coach at his school before going to jail. He was released recently and lives apart from his son to make a living.
In the table above, the blue numbers represent the lowest ratings and the red numbers represent the highest ratings.
This drama airs on a cable channel/pay TV which normally has a relatively smaller audience compared to free-to-air TV/public broadcasters (KBS, SBS, MBC and EBS).
^Oh, Soo-jung (March 25, 2021). 태민, 6년만에 '나빌레라' OST 가창 참여...'My Day' 30일 공개 [Taemin Participate on 'Navillera' OST After 6 Years...'My Day' Release on the 30th]. X Sports News (in Korean). Retrieved February 21, 2024.
^Choi, Su-hyeok (April 5, 2021). '나빌레라' 박인환X송강 사제듀오 케미 극대화시킨 OST 공개! 김국헌 'Butterfly' 발매 ['Navillera' OST Release Maximasize Park In-hwan x Song Kang Duo Chemistry! Kim Kookheon 'Butterfly' Release]. Public News (in Korean). Retrieved February 21, 2024.
^Yang, Yong-eun (April 13, 2021). 박인환X송강, 따뜻한 감성 담은 '나빌레라' 새 OST…소향 '아름다운 말' 발매 [Park Inhwan x Song Kang Warm Emotions in ' Navillera New OST... Sohyang's 'Beautiful Words' Release]. Straight News (in Korean). Retrieved February 21, 2024.
^Choi, Soo-jin (April 16, 2021). 하현상 '나빌레라' OST 참여, 'Heal You' 20일 공개 [Ha Hyunsang Participate on 'Navillera' OST 'Heal You' Release on the 20th]. Seoul Economy Daily (in Korean). Retrieved February 21, 2024.
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