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'Don't make comparisons, enjoy Pinga for what it is'

By Rajul Hegde
December 11, 2015 15:54 IST

'I find Katrina and Deepika very graceful. Sonakshi dances well too. I was surprised to see Alia dancing so well on one of the live shows. Shraddha did a good job in ABCD 2.'

Dancing diva Madhuri Dixit submits her report card.

Everyone is talking about the Pinga song from Bajirao Mastani, and how similar it is with Devdas' Dola Re. 

But Madhuri Dixit, who featured in the latter song with Aishwarya Rai, claims she hasn't even seen it yet!

"I have been traveling a lot," she tries to justify. "Don’t make comparisons, enjoy it for what it is.

"They (Deepika Padukone and Priyanka Chopra) have also worked hard on the dance. I am sure they have done a great job," she says.

Madhuri, who has charmed millions with her thumkas and latkas, initially found Bollywood dancing quite tough.

"I was trained in Kathak," she says. "I did not know anything about Bollywood dance. When I was shooting for Uttar Dakshin, Sarojji (Khan, choreoghrapher) told me I must learn Bollywood dance. I had to do a lot of rehearsals for Tezaab. I have learnt Bollywood dancing from her."

Sharing an anecdote, the dhak dhak girl says "I injured my head while dancing on Humko Aaj Kal Hai Intezaar (in the film Sailaab). The initial steps were difficult, where I had to go down on the floor and do some gestures.

"I remember during rehearsals I banged my head on the floor so hard that I got a bump on my forehead," she says with a laugh.

Knowing her love for dance, it's not surprising that Madhuri and her husband Dr Sriram Nene's RnM Moving Pictures has collaborated with Tata Sky to launch Dance Studio.  The highlight of this venture is the actress will teach the dance steps of her popular songs like Ghagra, Ek Do Teen, Tamma Tamma, Aaja Nachle and more.

"Dance has always been my passion; acting is my first love. I learnt dance at age three. It gives me a lot of happiness, pleasure, spiritual experience and I wanted to share it with people," adds the B-town diva.

For the studio, they have lined-up dance legends like Pandit Birju Maharaj, ace choreographers Saroj Khan, Remo D'Souza, Terence Lewis, Deepak Singh, Savio Barnes, Shampa Gopikrishna and Meher Malik.

Madhuri says, "You can learn from the best of gurus at your own convenience. It is good for housewives. It’s a great medium for people to learn dance. Those who dance badly, I feel like telling them to go and learn dance from Dance with Madhuri."

Dance Studio will introduce various dance forms ranging from Bollywood dance to specialised forms like Kathak, Bharatanatyam, Jazz, Contemporary, Hip-Hop along with Salsa and Tango.

As for her favourite dancer in Bollywood, the Gulaab Gang heroine says, "I find Katrina (Kaif) and Deepika (Padukone) very graceful. Sonakshi (Sinha) dances well too. I was surprised to see Alia Bhatt dancing so well on one of the live shows. Shraddha (Kapoor) did a good job in ABCD 2."

Rajul Hegde / Rediff.com in Mumbai

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