Bollywood: East meets West

I arrived in India for the first time in January 2014, totally thrown by the chaos, smell and poverty. However it didn't take me long to fall completely in love with the surprising, mysterious and colourful culture; so much so that I stayed there collectively for a year, dancing in close to 30 Bollywood movies, as well as shows, TV awards ceremonies and ads, working with top choreographers such as Ganesh Acharya, Bosco Martis, Ganesh Hedge and Mac. Little did I know I was dancing alongside Bollywood stars Akshay Kumar, Salman Kahn,   Shahrukh Kahn, Sunny Leone and Deepika Padukone. I successfully auditioned for a guest role in the Hindi TV series Swim Team, where I featured in 10 episodes as a guest character. I delight in teaching Bollywood classes and workshops, as I have found all age groups, levels and abilities can't help but smile and love the catchy upbeat music and choreography. I continue to teach and perform Bollywood on a freelance basis in London. 

My experiences dancing in Bollywood also inspired my MA research into racial stereotypes within the Bollywood industry, which I presented in Ghent, Brussels at The Young Researchers Conference in February 2018. I am continuing to research the issues encountered as part of my MA Anthropology research with the aim to help East and West better understand each other and how they portray themselves and each other in their respective popular cinema industries..

Some Bollywood movie credits from 2015..

Welcome to Karachi, Dir. Ashish R Mohan, Lalla Lalla Lori,

Pyaar Ka Punchnama, Dir. Luv Ranjan , Sharabi

Kuch Kuch Locha Hai, Dir. Devang Dholakia, Daaru Peeke Dance

Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3, Dir.Sangeeth Sivan , House Party

Some movie credits from 2014…

Happy New Year, Dir. Farah Kahn, India Waale, dancer.

Fugly, Dir. Kabir Sadanand, Fugly, commercial dancer.

Ek Villain, Dir. Mohit Suri, festival dancer

The Boothnath Returns, Dir. Nitesh Tiwari, Party With the Boothnath, commercial dancer