Ash,Madhuri,Shahid,Hrithik Most Graceful-Terence

Terence Lewis has done it all in his young life. By a combination of what he calls , divine providence and hard work, the man in his mid-thirties is riding a crest of stardom which has made him one of the most recognizable personalities on the Indian entertainment Indian scene. This celebrity is a much sought after choreographer for mega Bollywood shows Corporate launches music videos and commercial advertising shots.

Lewis already has an innumerable array of achievements under his belt but when asked to name the crowning glory of them all, he responded without hesitation "D-I-D." LUX Dance India Dance is the reality show that airs on Zee TV which has exploded into the country's largest dance based program providing a platform for young dancers to showcase their talent to a whole nation. Lewis is one of the leading choreographers in the show along with others such as Remo D'Souza and Geeta Kapur.

DID, says Lewis, has opened the doors to a whole new artistic experience by showing dance in a sophisticated, artistic manner instead of just pure entertainment. He said it has become a favorite family based show and has for the first time revealed to parents that dance is a skilful art which can be presented with emotion , with sentiment and in great depth and thanks to DID , dance has gained a new respect which has transformed it from a hobby to a career choice in which both children and parents can venture with their heads held high.

Though Lewis has made a name in the film industry with his work in movies such as 'Lagaan', which won him the American Choreography Award, 'Naach' and 'Shikar' among many, he is quick to point out that his focus is on the teaching and promotion of contemporary dance and not Bollywood. His niche is merging contemporary dance with Indian classical and folk styles.

Terence Lewis was in Los Angeles early October to teach aspiring dancers the ABCDs of dance in Workshops presented by Reetu Patel of Mad Bollywood Dance Company. Patel herself had been drawn to Lewis' through DID and had made the trip to Mumbai to train at his Academy. When he outlined his project in America she was quick to take on the responsibility of conducting the Los Angeles segment of his maiden 10 city tour of the US. In these workshops he says he can show that "Any Body Can Dance," even those with two left feet! Most fear to venture he said because they have not had the right teacher to guide them. But he clarifies dancing and being a dancer are two different things ' he guarantees he can teach anybody to dance but to become a dancer one needs talent, focus and discipline.

The passion for dance started early for Lewis when at age 6 he won a dance competition which he said was a 'power trip' with everybody's eyes on him. In the beginning he taught himself watching Michael Jackson videos but his limitations were exposed when while being presented the trophy for a dance competition the visiting Jazz Ballet teacher Parvez Shetty told him he was "the best of the worst." He enrolled for her classes and loved the course and later came under the influence of Jaan Freeman who taught him the Horton technique and persuaded him to travel to New York and train at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He went on to became the first Indian to receive prestigious Dance WEB Scholarship, when he represented India in Vienna, Austria.

Many training schools have mushroomed in Mumbai but the Terence Lewis Dance Foundation Trust started in 2005 is the only one of its kind which offers internationally recognized courses with a view to providing dance as a serious career choice.

Of all the leading Bollywood stars he rates Hrithik Roshan and Shahid Kapoor among the men and Madhuri Dixit and Aishwarya Bachchan among the women as the most delightful to work with because he says they have natural grace, a comfort of movement and bring in a flair or X-Factor of their own when they are being taught.

His long term plans include setting up his own studios in the US run by locally trained dancers who will be his dance ambassadors bringing joy into the lives of people through dance and bringing the community together.

When egged on to reveal whether 'settling down' is looming on the horizon, Terence Lewis swiftly brushed the question aside with " I am just going with the flow ' enjoying life and dance ' am married to my dance right now."