On The Sets Of Nach Baliye

Pune, November 27: It was my day to Nach Baliye. It began at 6 a.m. No, I reach the show's sets at that time in the morning but in order to keep my step with the dance I, along with other scribes, had to board a flight from Delhi to Mumbai, earaly in the morning.

We were picked up from the airport and driven straight to Studio 5 in Film City. It was so festive, it looked as if there was a function going on. I was handed the studio pass and went inside a fully lit tunnel into the gallery. Songs which the contestants were supposed to perform were played for checking. I sat in the front row.

The sitting section was divided into two parts — one for the choreographers and the contestants' family and the other for the general audience, with the judges sandwiched in between. I hear there's a big rush for the passes and people flock in from far and near on Saturdays to watch the performance live.

Looking around me, I saw five or six cameras placed in different positions, one hovering right above my head. I was a bit scared - what if it falls? I shifted my focus to the lighting arrangements and the design of the studio. Everything is pitch black but there are different colours of bulbs here and there. I went to the washroom to freshen up. There I saw a lady in red (Meena Kumari in Pakeezah) rehearsing with three other dancers. I peered intently at her but failed to recognise her because of the amount of make-up she has applied.

Outside, I saw the judges (Malaika Arora Khan, Saroj Khan and Farhan Akhtar) coming in one by one. Goodie, I thought, now it's going to start. My intuition was wrong. I was in the studio for more than an hour but the team was still busy fixing the cameras. Then came the round of applause. We were made to clap with different sounds and expressions for quite some time. By the end of it, my palm was red and itchy as I clapped for nothing in front of my eyes! I realised that as a member of the audience I was also acting my part, (remembered Shakespeare's line All the world is a stage...). Meanwhile, anchors Sangeeta Ghosh and Shabir Ahluwalia were busy rehearsing their scripts and expressions.

I was just thinking that a shoot of a movie, soap or a contest is all about patience when the contest started and Archana Puran Singh came on stage. After getting the judges (poor) reaction, the participant met her family backstage and learnt the judges score. One hitch, there are no retakes for the contestants but there are for the anchors. I sat through quite a few retakes, watched how they change their expression with the word 'action.'

Now, remember my lady in red? She came on stage and I realised she was none other then Rajeshwari. One by one the other performers came and did their number. It was suddenly 3.30 p.m. — lunchbreak. I tasted the unit ka Khaana.

My 'star' was Surpriya Pilgaonkar, who had enthralled the judges and the audience with a Kahi Jaise Hawaiyen from Main Hoon Na. She said she was inspired to dance to the sweet 16 song by her daughter. Dressed in tattered jeans and torn tops with beaded hair she looked 20 years younger. She disagreed with the general conception of the 'sympathy factor' for her and Sachin. ''Early on I guess it was there. The competition has become so tough and we have been giving a consistent performance,'' says Pilgaonkar.

The competition seemed to be healthy. There were hugs and handshakes after each performance with the partners praising each others performance. Apoorva Agnihotri and Shilpa Saklani came to cheer for Archana Puran Singh and Parmeet Sethi who was down with a stomach infection.

Suddenly it was time to leave for the flight to Delhi. Also, I had not kept my promise. Pilgoankar had asked me to convey a message to Farhan Akhtar: ''Please tell Farhan that if he is looking out for character artiste for his movie, I am ready to don the mantle of mother, sister, bhabhi... His movies define every character and I want to be a part of it.'' I couldn't convey the message in person, so Supriya, I am doing it in writing.

(The trip was sponsored by Star One)