You've seen them on TV screens and now, get ready to shake a leg with them this Navratri. Your favourite small screen stars — Rithwik Dhanjani of Pavitra Rishta, Amrita Chatterjee aka Pihu of Bade Achhe Lagte Hai, Raghav Juyal of Dance India Dance fame and Siddharth Roadies Bharadwaj — are coming to Kolkata to take part in the festivities with you.
TV stars' instant connect with their audience has Dandiya organizers queueing up at their doors for making appearances at various dandiya nights. While that's the star line-up for Kolkata, Apra Mehta, Nandish Sandhu, Sanjeeda Sheikh, Aamir Ali, Shrenu Parikh, Manish Raisinghani, Deepika Singh, Neelu Waghela and Drashti Dhami will add to the Dandiya glamour in other cities. "We are coming to Kolkata on October 22 and Amrita is excited. She has even got her father to buy her a new lehenga and bought lots of jewellery. This is her first Dandiya as a celebrity," said Mrinmayee Chatterjee, mother of five-year-old Amrita. Ask her if her li'l girl knows Dandiya steps. "She is so good at it that she surprises us."
Rithwik Dhanjani will shoot early morning and take the next flight to Kolkata so that his shooting schedules are not affected. "I have got a lot of requests after my performance in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. I'll be seen in my actor-cum-dancer package," he said.
Manish Raisinghani, who will be going to Ahmedabad and Baroda, says that it is a win-win situation for them apart from the obvious benefits. It is a way for them to connect with the audience which, in turn, might help up the viewership of the serials they star in.
For every appearance they make, they are paid '2 lakh to '5 lakh depending on their popularity. But not everyone take time out from their schedules to make it to Dandiya appearances. "Pariva Pranati and Suchita Trivedi had asked for offs to attend dandiyas. But since Suchita is just back from America and we don't have a bank of episodes, we couldn't grant them leaves. But Shrenu Parikh, the lead of Byaah Humari Bahoo Ka, has been given a day off since she wanted to be a part of a dandiya night in her city, Baroda," said producer JD Majethia.
Apra Mehta, who was recently in the city to judge a raas Dandiya, said, "My schedule is packed this Dandiya.I don't just pose for pictures and wave at the crowds. I perform with my fans as well." So, it's time to bring out those gorgeous lehengas and hit the floor to dance with the stars!
Arjun
