Dance Day: Bollywood Embraces International Dance Styles | Hindi Movie News
Recently, the party number “Bom Diggy Diggy” from “Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety” featured the Jamaican dance style, Dancehall, while “ABCD”, “ABCD2” and “Judwaa 2” used popular forms like contemporary and hip hop. Speaking about this trend, choreographer Terence Lewis says, “Bollywood music directors have really upped their game. They are creating new-age music that is edgy, creative and on par with international music. Naturally, even the choreography has to match the tunes and so we experiment with different forms. For example, Dancehall basically goes with Reggaeton and Caribbean music. The form is characterized by faster rhythms and beats.
Sound and audio production play an important role in giving a song its dance value. Some composers even design and maintain a bank of catchy tunes.
Composer Mannan Shah says, “Groove or rhythmic structure plays a key role in bringing a person to the dance floor and it’s the beat that gives a song some momentum. We have programmers and arrangers who know how to capture the nerves of the audience, causing them to stomp as soon as they hear the song.
Composers and choreographers reinvent themselves
Choreographer Shiamak Davar, who popularized contemporary dance in Bollywood, says: “Dance is music made visible. Contemporary dance is a representation of emotions and therefore it fits well into our cinema. He believes the industry is extremely competitive and this drives musicians and choreographers to reinvent themselves and experiment with different forms of music and dance.
Exposure to international dance performances and world music helped introduce new dance forms
Composer Clinton Cerejo shares, “Urban audiences are exposed to international shows like ‘So You Think You Can Dance,’ and it’s affected choreography in Bollywood.” The landscape, as far as sound is concerned, has widened considerably over the past two years, all thanks to young composers and producers arriving on the scene from different backgrounds and musical influences. Yash Narvekar, singer-songwriter and lyricist, says, “The kind of exposure we have to world music is one of the main reasons why new dance forms have emerged in our industry. Choreographer Suresh Mukund adds, “Bollywood mainly uses fusion styles of dance forms. The actual hip-hop dance form was used in the song “Bezubaan Phir Se” (“ABCD2”).
Traditional Indian dance forms are just as cool
Some filmmakers like Sanjay Leela Bhansali have made an ode to classical dance forms. Her films like ‘Devdas’, ‘Bajirao Mastani’ and ‘Padmaavat’ presented traditional dance styles with beauty and grace. ‘Ghoomar’, a folk dance style was featured in ‘Padmaavat’. Other composers and choreographers also feel that even though Bollywood is doing well right now with all kinds of international dances being incorporated into films, more Indian dance forms should be used in films. Shankar Mahadevan, songwriter-singer, says: “Throughout the world, there is immense respect for Bharatanatyam, Kathak and other Indian folk dances. We should also start respecting them. The day we start to believe that our dance forms are “cool”, we will start to incorporate more of them into our films. »
Music and dance have always worked in tandem
In the 50s and 60s, the choreography had a classic touch. The songs often featured Kathak, Bharatnatyam, and other folk dance-based steps in the movies. Later, with the growing popularity of rock, trance and Sufi music, the choreography also changed. The choreographers believe that at that time most musical directors came mainly from classical backgrounds, whereas today many have also trained in western musical forms, which has influenced their compositions. Fazal Qureshi, tabla player and instrumentalist, says: “Music and choreography are linked; they go hand in hand. Bollywood music has really changed from what it was in the 50s and 60s. Back then, if there were seven songs in a movie, five would be Indian and two would have Western tunes. Now, if there are seven songs, five are Western and maybe one or two will have Sufi or Indian influences.
