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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#31

My first celeb student

Sandip Soparrkar
Choreographer

My first celebrity client was television actor Kitu Gidwani, who I met in 2001 while working on dance sequences for Hosi Vasunia's play, Trip the Light Fantastic.

The first dance she learnt from me was the Cha Cha Cha, and has by now mastered nine dance forms altogether. I am currently teaching her Paso Doble, a Spanish bullfight dance. Kitu loves a dance in its pure form, and does not want to mix it with any other. She is one of my favourite students — so quick on the uptake that at times I have to tell her, "I can't teach you any more steps today!"

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#32

Rati Agnihotri haazir ho!
By: Vickey Lalwani
September 13, 2006

Rati Agnihotri with her dance partner Feroz Khan

Rati Agnihotri has always been counted among the better dancers of the Hindi film industry. She probably expected a thumping reaction to her performance in a dance show. But that wasn't the case.

Rati and her husband Anil Virwani were stunned by the unsavoury reactions to her performance in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa's first episode telecast last Thursday. Today, when the second airs, the actress and her real life partner present their point of view.

Charge No 1: Rati's costume disaster

Rati: I take the blame. They wanted me to wear a bright orange, but I chose the rust orange. When I wore that outfit, I somehow felt that it wouldn't click. My choice misfired. But by then, it was too late. There was no time to get anything new done. This Thursday, I am wearing turquoise blue and I am sure it will be appreciated. Short kurta mujhpe nahin jamega. I have to keep my age and size in consideration.

Anil: Rajshri had danced in a double sari to the same song in Brahmachari. Rati's choreographer told her that she wouldn't be able to dance in that; it would be too tight for her. And, Rati doesn't want to wear short and revealing clothes, no matter if that goes against her. She never wore when she was a heroine, she won't wear it now either.

Charge No 2: Rati's movements were slow

Rati: I had three slipped discs and put on weight especially after the last one, which was very severe and confined me to complete bed rest for two months under traction. I even had to undergo two surgeries. This was the reason why I put on weight. And not to forget, my dislocated arm. I'd been out of town for a shoot.

The judges have not been partial to Rati. They were ridiculously over-generous to Sanjeev Kapoor. Even Mahesh Manjrekar scored more than he should have. There were no technical skills on display when Mahesh danced. They got up to even hug him"
— Anil Virwani

On my return, my three pet Labradors in the terrace were excited to see me after a long gap. I was coming down the stairs and they were chasing me down and I tripped and went rolling down the stairs. In order to save my back, I landed on my arm. This happened just a week prior to the rehearsals. But I still went ahead with the show. All said and done, when I am old, I will still be proud that I had the guts to do Jhalak Dikhhla Ja in my mid-forties with a back which was, to say the least, traumatic.

Anil: My wife is 200-films-old. She has tremendous respect in the industry. Don't expect her to dance like an item-girl. Add this to those slipped discs. I still cannot forget the day when she got her first slipped disc.

She was doing a film with Kumar Gaurav and some idiots told her to sit on a cycle with Bunty and come down- hill. The second one occurred at her niece's wedding, 12 years ago, and the third which was the worst, happened in December last year after she returned from the shooting of Karma, Confessions and Holi. Even at home, she has many dos and don'ts. I appreciate her choreographer who makes her do the stretches and physiotherapy before the rehearsals.

Charge No 3: Rati received more points than she deserved

Rati: The judges may have felt very happy to see someone of my age to have come out and danced (the last time I danced was in Tawaif in '84), but I am sure that they weren't partial to me.

Anil: My wife scored just what she deserved. The judges have not been partial to her. In fact, they were ridiculously over-generous to Sanjeev Kapoor. There was no movement. Just because a chef cannot dance, he is allowed to get away with high marks.

Bloody nonsense! Even Mahesh Manjrekar scored more than he should have. There were no technical skills on display when Mahesh danced. He was simply entertaining. What were those marks given for? They got up to even hug him. Why single out Rati?

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#33

WE don't come soooooooo cheap

Farah Khan

Shilpa Shetty

There was a time when stars would refuse to quote their actual fee for films and shows because they didn't want the taxman to get after them. In fact, they'd say there were getting paid less than the figures that were being brandished around.

How things have changed! Yesterday we wrote an item about Shilpa Shetty getting 70 lakh and Farah Khan taking home 60 lakh to play judge on Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. This morning, Farah and Shilpa called us up to grumble.

While Shilpa said, "Your source got my figures all wrong, what I am getting paid for the show is nothing close to 70 lakhs. It's way too little. You think I'd do a show for that sum?" While our heads were still reeling with that, Farah asked, "Where do you guys get to hear such things? I am not getting paid less than what Shilpa is getting."

Mr. Bhansali hasn't been in touch to comment on his amount. Meanwhile, we learnt that Karisma had quoted a whopping 2 crore when the channel had approached her to judge the show. Her excuse apparently was, "I have a baby to look after so I need that much money," but it didn't hold much water with the channel, so Lolo's comeback is still in limbo.

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#34

Remember Farah Khan, Bakhtyaar?

Bakhtyaar Irani with fiance Tanaaz Lal

It beats us how channels turn a blind eye while selecting participants for their much-touted dance shows.

They harp that they are all novices who don't know the A, B, C of dancing. Already there is a buzz about Shveta Salve in Sony's Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa that she has apparently learnt dancing — the reason why her moves are oh so perfect.

But what about Bakhtyaar Irani? He is slated to feature along with fiance Tanaaz Lal in Star One's Nach Baliye 2. To jog your memory, Bakhtyaar was not only part of Shiamak Davar's but also Farah Khan's dance troupe. He was part of Farah's troupe for two years.

And in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which had Shiamak do the choreography, Bakhtyaar was very much a part of it. Bakhtyaar was also a choreographer for a while before he took up an airline job and turned to acting. Now what does that make Bakhtyaar? According to Star One, he is a novice. The channel needs to get their facts right and a dictionary to look up the meaning of 'novice.'

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#35

Mona does 400 crunches a day!

Mona Singh has lost seven kgs in one month, and she's lovin' it!

NICOLE DASTUR

When Mona 'Jassi' Singh signed up for the dance show on television, she thought all she was going to do was dance. Little did she know it would be a weight-loss (and a vigorous one at that!) program as well! "My choreographer Toby is sensible, he realised dancing with a heavy body would be more difficult for me. I'd only be lifting my own weight, rather than focusing on the steps. So instead of starting with dancing, we started with exercise," says a thinner, fitter and happier Mona.
So what did her daily exercise routine, that went on for a month, comprise? "I did 400 crunches a day, after which Toby made me climb up and down the 16 floors of my building. Then the dance rehearsals would begin. That would continue for five to six hours, that too, without the air-conditioning on! I used to swim in my own sweat!" laughs Mona. But it's not just the exercise routine, Mona even began eating healthy. "I'm currently on a complete raw diet. No chappatis, bread or rice for this Punjabi girl!"
So, does she like the new Mona? And will she continue to maintain her weight post Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa? "It's a wonderful feeling when your jeans keep slipping down. For the first time in my life, I've to wear a belt! It's a real feel-good factor. I love it!" laughs Mona.

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#36

Pooja ousted from Jhalak
By: Shaheen Parkar
September 14, 2006

Pooja Bedi with Hanif Hilal

Pooja Bedi, the first contestant to face the axe from the Sony reality show, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, is a die-hard optimist. "It is only a show after all. Every week some one will be out. Everyone has been asking me: how come it was you? I tell them at least I have the honour of being the first. What a way to get out; everyone is talking about you."

Though Pooja may laugh and joke about how she is always the first to do things, onlookers blame her actor-choreographer Hanif Hilal for her exit.

Overconfident

Says an onlooker, "He was overconfident about his choreography and dancing skills. He was on his own trip. Hanif did not want any interference from the choreographers appointed by the channel to oversee and guide the rehearsals. In fact, none of these people attended Pooja's rehearsals.

They had stopped checking on Pooja over two weeks ago. Initially, they did give Hanif their inputs but he had sent a message through other people that he did not like their presence at the rehearsals."

However, Hanif denies the allegations saying that the appointed choreographers were overseeing the rehearsals. "This is just a perception people have. I am a trained Latin American dancer. In Jhalak, they wanted us to Bollywoodise the steps, but I was more in favour of Latin American steps," says Hanif who has his own dance troupe called Flames. He is still training under a UK-based dancer Marin Lane.

Shocked

"I was shocked by the result," says Hanif. "I know that it is all part of the game and that every week, someone will be out. But I did not expect our exit in the first round itself. There was lots more for Pooja.

Everyone was in tears except for the two of us. But even after the camera was switched off, Pooja took it very well. This is not a blaming game; so there was no finger-pointing. We did our best but eventually it is up to the judges and the viewers," says Hanif who is also the second runner-up of this year's Grasim Mr India.

Another allegation against Hanif is that he wore silver trousers when in Latin American dance form the dress code is normally black pants — something what the other male choreographers stuck to.

"The show is not to showcase the choreographer. He is good at his dance anyway — it is to focus the contestant. Hanif's silver trousers were a tad jarring when it came to the overall presentation," says the onlooker. But Hanif points out that his outfit was designed by the channel's appointed stylists for the show.

Adds the onlooker, "In Latin American dancing, when a couple dances it is looking at a flower. The woman is the flower and the man the stem. The beauty of the dance comes from the movements of the flower —the woman. Pooja was a true flower but with a wrong stem."

'I will miss her hugs'

Sandeep Soparrkar, technical director, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, on Pooja Bedi's exit…

"Pooja Bedi danced extremely well. She had worked really hard on the technical moves and it showed in her steps. I really appreciate that. She was very elegant ceful. I was really sad to see Pooja go. Hats off to her as she took her exit very gracefully and she was cheerful till the very end. I will miss her hugs and giggles. She is such a warm person. Pooja was extremely elegant in her moves as well as her dress sense — whatever she wore really suited her. But I guess it was just not her night."

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#37

Bakhtyaar

When Bakhtyaar auditioned for Jhalak!

After reading yesterday's item 'Remember Farah Khan, Bakhtyaar?' about Nach Baliye 2 contestant Bakhtyaar Irani having been a part of Farah's dance troupe, Sony could not help but be amused by Star One's choice of contestants.

That's because Bakhtyaar had auditioned for Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa! He had desired to be part of the Sony dance show as a choreographer.

At the auditions, however Bakhtyaar was found adept at Bollywood jhatkas, but not in Latin American dance forms on which Jhalak is based, so he was not taken on board. Nach Baliye 2 now has one choreographer-dancer amidst its contestants. Wonder what the other novice Nach Baliye 2 couples have to say?

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@virgoqueen

Inactive

Posted: 18 years ago

#38

What a jhalak indeed!

Since the time of it's inception and now post it's launch, Jhalak Dikhla Ja has been in the news for all the right reasons, except for the flak it received (costumes, movements and comments). This Sony show has been under scrutiny for being an answer to Star One's Nach Baliye which got rave reviews last year.

So when we are invited to go on the sets (which we feel is to gauge media's reaction), we are charged up to watch our celebrities live in action! Here's a jhalak of what we saw.

To begin with, judges Farah Khan, Sanjay Leela Bhansali and svelte Shilpa Shetty mostly kept aloof and joked amongst themselves. They also seemed to dislike the constant takes and retakes on the sets (talk about not having enough time for television!).

To add to the confusion, hosts, pati and dharampatni Parmeet and Archana seemed a bit distracted about something or maybe were not in the mood to give their best, as they were constantly giving retake pe retake, making us wonder when they'd get it righ

Coming to the contestants, Mahesh Manjrekar seems to be a hit with everyone, be it the judges or the fellow participants. His mimic acts and funny antics on the dance floor made the judges roll with laughter. His daughter (who had accompanied her daddy dearest) squirmed every time when Mahesh blew her a kiss!

Shveta Salve was a delight to watch….her graceful movements and sharp expressions were worth the high score. No wonder Mr. Bhansali compares this sultry actor with none other than the dancing queen Madhuri Dixit. Even Shilpa Shetty agrees with him.

Rati Agnihorti seems to have taken the feedback seriously as her costumes has

bettered this time. It's quite commendable to participate in such a competition at this age notwithstanding the innumerable slip discs she's had. Talking about the performance, there's scope for improvement. There's some co-ordination gap between her movements and her choreographer Feroz, who seems to overpower her. But having her son and husband sit in the audience every week seems to work for Rati's dipping scores.

Mona Singh has finally come out of her Jassi image and we found her sweating it out to get into the groove. Farah Khan and Sanjay take a close look to find if she fits in the Bollywood scene! Especially after shedding oodles of weight, this punju kudi looks all the more smashing and sashays more smoothly.

After receiving the lowest score last week, Akashdeep Saigal has definitely worked big time on his act and was in perfect co ordination with his choreographer Bindi. They put their best foot forward and left the rest on the judges and the viewers. And yes, we couldn't possibly miss Akashdeep looking at judge Farah for better marks, but the lady seemed quite rigid when it comes to him (her ex-flame)!

But the dark horse could be Ajay Jadeja as we saw him bowling over the maidens (literally) with his Govinda ishtyle! And his choreographer Rhea seems to be complementing him well, besides teaching him the right steps. This cricketer turned actor is planning to get his son the next week to watch him perform. How sweet!

At the end of the shoot, Sanjay made a quick exit while Farah stayed put for a few retakes and Shilpa gladly obliged for some sound bytes.

We also spotted actor Mohan Kapoor (of Saap Seedi fame and Achint Kaur's boyfriend) who is a part of the production team, looking after the nuances and making the judges feel at home. Producer duo Siddharth Basu and wife Anita Kaul Basu were at their sweetest best with the press and the celebs.

All in all…….dancing with the stars can be quite a fun filled experience, we say…!

Edited by virgoqueen - 18 years ago

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@virgoqueen

Inactive

Posted: 18 years ago

#39

Murder on the dance floor

Some random observations on the Wednesday episode of Sony's over-hyped and Nach Baliye-inspired dance show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa

Anil Thakraney

Clearly, Sony has managed to take the wind out of Nach Baliye's sails… by beating them to it by a cool 20 days. Whatever gimmicks the Baliye people now conjure up, there's bound to be a sense of dj vu. Specially considering that most TV stars are as silly dancers as the wannabes and have-beens we see do their number on Jhalak.

Yana Gupta is a stunner, no doubt on that. And while her muscles are sufficiently supple and elastic for her to be a dancer, she lacks natural rhythm and poetry in her body. Yana should try gymnastics instead. In fact, this Czech born girl seemed to be doing that anyways, her movements on Kajrare reminded me of Nadia, not Ash.

Ditto with Ajay Jadeja, who, frankly, is the one who should have been declared leg before wicket in the first round itself. And not Pooja Bedi & Partner who were far superior. Paaji Sidhu never tires of reminding how stiff Ganguly is as a dancer, he should have been there watching Jaddu move like an iron rod. Being bitchy now, but I sense a case of match-fixing here as well.

Why on earth is Bhansalibhai on the judges' panel? What does he know of dance? This is a naach competition, not a contest to determine who can make a super photocopy of a Hollywood film, and smoothly pass it off as a black 'miracle'.

I think Rati Agnihotri should retire from the show gracefully. It's okay to feel young in the head, but we all have our sell-by dates, and television is a wickedly visual medium.

On a more positive note, I do like the absolute seriousness with which they conduct the show. All that tension, suspense, well-timed commercial breaks, tears, hugs, kisses, etc only to decide which couple would get eliminated tonite! For a moment, I thought Archana Puran Singh and hubby were announcing verdict on the 1993 blasts.

So while all the energy and drama add to the entertainment, we must also bear in mind some people just aren't meant to dance, like some people aren't meant to act or sing or make steam engines. It's not for everybody, and them old fogies really don't make for a very pleasant sight. Frankly, Director Mahesh Manjrekar and chef Sanjeev Kapoor have no business being out there.

So who do I think will finally win? My bet's on Rati Agnihotri. Or Manjrekar. Or Jadeja. Or Sanjeev Kapoor. We Indians are just too damn emotional, yaar. We like to keep our senior citizens happy.

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Shruti

@shruti

Alumni

+ 9

Posted: 18 years ago

#40

'It is not in my genes to cry'

Usha Thomas

Thursday, September 14, 2006 19:13 IST

Pooja Bedi's elimination from 'Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa' (Sony) has not dampened her spirits. She loves the fact that she is the first to leave the show and says, "It's always the first that is spotlighted." Teamed with choreographer Hanif Hilal, the duo was among the three pairs that faced elimination. Pooja says, "Reality TV is utterly exciting. It felt like being fired from a job. But it is not in my genes to cry." She continues, " It is not that I did not dance well but one has to go at some point. I am happy that I am the first.
I learnt how to dance, lost weight and I have made friendships for life."

In true sporting spirit she adds, "I intend going back each week and cheering the others. It was a happy, loving and mad experience," says an elated Pooja.

The gruelling rehearsals are behind her but Pooja intends to learn new dance forms. "I would like to do a rumba for my finale appearance on the show when all eight pairs will dance."

Dismissing rumours about her close proximity with choreographer Hanif, Pooja clarifies, "He is a flirt and enjoyable company. But I am not seeing him. I date men, not boys. I am thankful to him for teaching me dance. Hanif wants to make me the best Latin American dancer in the country."

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