On June 7, during Gallery Walk in downtown Brattleboro, I was invited to DJ and lead a group of partygoers in a Bollywood dance as part of the multicultural festival hosted by the Ethiopian Community Development Center (ECDC ). The crowd participated enthusiastically and it was very heartwarming for me to see the people standing on the sides slowly letting go of their inhibitions and joining in the dancing.
It was a high-energy dance party that represented everything Bollywood dance symbolizes: a communal, unapologetic and vibrant celebration. Bollywood dance, with its universal appeal, encompasses several national and global influences, but its main quality is that of inclusiveness.
It is designed to invite spectators to participate and imitate the movements to the best of their ability and the only skill required is that of total enjoyment. Bollywood dance is a popular phenomenon that now enjoys worldwide recognition.
In this two-part article, I will elaborate on the various characteristics and appeal of Bollywood dance while sharing information about some iconic dance numbers that have shaped the course of dance in Indian films.
What is Bollywood dance?
Bollywood is the nickname given to Indian films made in the Hindi language. The name is a fusion of the city of Bombay, where the Indian film industry was born, and Hollywood. The history of Indian cinema is rooted in Parsi theater, which included courtly romances and historical costume dramas accompanied by live music and dance. From the first Indian talking film, Alam Ara (1931), music and dance have established themselves as essential elements of cinematic stories.
Drawing on centuries-old traditions of classical music from North and South India as well as classical dance forms such as Kathak and Bharatanatyam, song and dance in Indian films have become tools of expression and entertainment designed to make the experience more memorable for the audience.
Over the years, the dance style in Indian films has borrowed from several global influences, including hip-hop, salsa, flamenco, contemporary, jazz, break dancing and bebop, but in its final version designed , personalized for the Indian viewer, it can best be described as Bollywood dance.
One of the main features of Bollywood dance is a series of movements that allude to the lyrics of the song. For example, if the song describes a person's kohl-rimmed eyes, the corresponding dance moves will highlight the eyes by pointing at them, or define them by placing the first two fingers horizontally on the top and bottom of the eye. eye, like in the song. Kajra Re from the film Bunty Aur Babli (2005). For a song about a beating heart, the dance moves will involve cool, chest-thumping steps: the most popular example being Beta's Dhak Dhak Karne Laga (1992).
Dance numbers act as narrative tools, fillers, or advertisements; often they are created in the style of a music video to better market the film. Dance numbers from each upcoming film are frequently broadcast on television, radio and social media, the idea being that regardless of the plot of the film, the songs will ensure that the film remains in the memory of the public and results in ticket sales. I'm guilty of watching several bad movies in the theater just to see a catchy dance number starring my favorite actor or actress on the screen.
Over the years, Bollywood dance numbers have become big-budget extravaganzas and often surpass the success of the film itself. Much of their success is due to the catchy dance moves that choreographers create to establish a song's central theme. The idea of a Bollywood dance number is not only to entertain people but also to encourage the audience to copy the moves and entertain themselves or the people around them. Therefore, having an identifiable, eye-catching dance move (think the Macarena) that can be easily recreated at a dance party becomes a universal language with which to communicate with other Bollywood dance fans.
Professional choreography and iconic dances
Bollywood's most famous awards, Filmfare, was established in 1954 by a successful film magazine of the same name.
It was not until 1989 that an award category for best choreography was created. The reason for the creation of this award category was an iconic song that took the entire country by storm: Ek Do Teen from the film Tezaab (1988). It was the debut dance number of Madhuri Dixit, the superstar dance diva of Bollywood.
The song's catchy lyrics include counting numbers in Hindi: ek do teen char paanch che saat aath nau… (one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight) up to 30, like describes the female character. several days a month, she waits for news of her love.
Choreographer Saroj Khan led the dance moves and a hook step where Dixit describes how she does intezaar (waiting) for her beloved: her right hand protecting her forehead, like when looking for someone in the distance , and jumping back while shaking. his hips to the rhythm.
Ek Do Teen appears in the film as a stage performance with seven costume changes, approximately 50 backup dancers, and continuous high-energy dance moves. Final filming of the song took place in a studio in front of a live audience of 1,000 people. As Dixit performed the dance and hook step, the audience began screaming and tearing off their clothes, waving them at him in a fit of excitement.
When Tezaab was released in theaters, the audience asked the projectionists to replay Ek Do Teen several times during the screening and threw coins at the screen in excitement. This song alone made Saroj Khan the quintessential Bollywood choreographer (she won maximum awards for best choreography throughout her career), catapulted Madhuri Dixit to superstardom in the 1990s, and created a language for Bollywood dance which has been followed, perfected and improved over the years. come.
In next month's column, I'll share more stories of iconic dance numbers, including Chaiyya Chaiyya, the only song to be choreographed atop a moving train.
Bollywood dance has become an integral part of Indian society with choreographed dance sequences being present in almost every pre-wedding celebration. It has also given birth to an entire industry of talent shows, and these shows are among the highest-rated television programs in the country. All these interesting aspects, I will discuss in my next column.
