Cut to 2009. Khan was roped in to judge a 45-episode dance reality show titled \u201cDance Pe Chance\u201d that was mounted by Rituparna Sengupta\u2019s production house and had six famous faces from Mumbai and six from Kolkata vying for the best twinkle toes trophy. The first and the last time she choreographed for Tollywood was in 2016 when she worked in Arindam Sil\u2019s \u201cByomkesh Pawrbo\u201d. <\/p>\n
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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n(From left) <\/span>Bickram Ghosh<\/span>, Arindam Sil, Saroj Khan and <\/span>Sayantika Banerjee<\/span> Rituparna Sengupta with Saroj Khan on the sets of ‘Dance Pe Chance’<\/span> A clip of Saroj Khan from the sets of ‘Byomkesh Pawrbo’<\/span> Sayantika replicating Saroj Khan’s choreography for ‘Dil rasiya re’<\/span> Saroj Khan with Sayantika’s teacher, Soujit Das, and his wife, Somali<\/span>
The news of Khan\u2019s demise on Friday brought back memories of her associates in Kolkata with many describing the experience of working with her a lesson not just in dance but professionalism as well. Sengupta considers herself \u201cfortunate\u201d to have been a part of a reality show that had Khan on board. According to Sengupta, \u201cShibu (Shiboprasad Mukherjee) and Nanditadi (Nandita Roy) had directed that show. Shibu and June were the anchors, while I would appear in special episodes. Working with her was a dream come true for me. I have grown up seeing her songs including \u2018Dhak dhak karne laga\u2019 and \u2018Choli ke peeche\u2019. For her, dance was about being gracefully sexy. She would choreograph the moves in such a way that the actresses looked extremely sensual.\u201d The Bollywood line-up of Sengupta\u2019s show boasted of the likes of Sai Deodhar, Barkha Bisht, Resshmi Ghosh, Mouli Ganguly, Sayantani Ghosh and Karishma Tanna. The Tollywood team featured Rimjhim Mitra, Monami Ghosh, Sohini Sanyal, Ritika Banerjee, Arpita and Manjushree.
In fact, a mesmerized Sengupta had also requested Khan to teach her some facial expressions. \u201cI treasure those moments. She has been one of the pillars of our film industry and I feel with her touch, many stars were actually reborn in Bollywood. Her choreography ensured that the songs were a hit. And if a song was a hit, it not only helped the film but also boosted an actress\u2019 demand in world tours. One hit song by her was enough for an actress to embark on a world tour! That was Saroj Khan and it was my great fortune that she had agreed to do a show for me,\u201d Sengupta said. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-226619,msid-76768904\/76768904.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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At the finale of the show, Sengupta had decided to perform \u2018Dola re dole\u2019. \u201cI was so nervous and had told her that I had cold feet. I still remember she had told me that she would love to see how I danced to the song. Dressed in a red-bordered sari, I had danced to the \u2018Devdas\u2019 song while she had watched my moves. We lost an asset and a treasure of art and cinema. I will miss her,\u201d she said.
Stepping in as a co-judge in this show was percussionist Bickram Ghosh. \u201cSarojji and I had shot together for more than two weeks daily. I was there as a representative of rhythm that is intrinsic to dance. Besides, I also had the experience of accompanying many classical dancers,\u201d Ghosh said. Back then, the verbal fireworks between Khan and Ghosh during judging had become the talk of town. \u201cIt was quite an amazing experience. Much later, when Arindam (Sil) was doing \u2018Byomkesh Pawrbo\u2019, both of us decided to rope in Sarojji for a \u2018majlish\u2019 song. I had called her up. She was very sweet. We had met in Mumbai and she came down to Kolkata. She was very impressed when I first sent her my music for \u2018Dil Rasiya Re\u2019,\u201d Ghosh said.
Picturised on Sayantika Banerjee, who played a powerful courtesan (Golap Bai), the song penned by Sutapa Basu was sung by Ujjaini Mukherjee. The choreography had a blend of Khan\u2019s signature moves as well as desi thumkas. \u201cShe had a very distinctive style and was brilliant at what she did. She understood filmi dance very well and also had training in Indian classical music. That\u2019s why she could choreograph even those portions so well. There was a \u2018tehai\u2019 in the song that she choreographed so well. If you compare her choreography with others, there is a marked difference in her work. She will be remembered as one of the greatest choreographers ever in Bollywood. I am deeply saddened,\u201d Ghosh added.
Working with Khan has been an \u201cincredible\u201d experience for Sil. For the \u201cDil rasiya re\u201d song, Sil had wanted to create a soundscape that reflected the \u201cinvasion of Bhojpuri raunchiness in the 40s and 50s world of Boubazar\u2019s baijis\u201d. The idea was to create a song that was raunchy without being vulgar. \u201cThat was the brief I had given to Bickram when he composed the music. Once done, we decided to ask Saroji to choreograph it. She readily agreed. Back then, I remember we had offered her Rs 2 lakh for a night of shooting in Kolkata,\u201d Sil said.
Even before the shooting began, Sil had a taste of \u201cthe brand of Saroj Khan\u201d. \u201cShe was very thorough. She wanted to know every detail of how the song would be shot and even how many cameras would be used. I was surprised with the level of technical knowhow that she had. This song wasn\u2019t supposed to be pictured in an authentic \u2018baijibari\u2019. I explained to her about how I wanted the moves to ooze sensuality. In order to do that, the camera angles needed to complement the choreography.\u201d <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-121803,msid-76767567\/76767567.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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What was even more surprising was that Khan sent over some clips of her choreography and asked Sil for his suggestion. \u201cI never expected this. I was way younger to her in terms of age and experience. But she was respectful towards me since I was the director of the film. She wanted to align her work with my vision. In fact, I even suggested some changes to her. She also reshot those portions and sent them across to me. Someone who had choreographed 2,000 songs in a career spanning 40 years and was used to shooting a Hindi song for days on end never cribbed when I said we just have 10 hours to shoot a song in Tollywood,\u201d Sil recalled.
Khan had flown down in the morning with two assistants and driven straight to the rehearsal pad. \u201cShe had loved Sayantika\u2019s moves and had even told her that she danced \u2018far better than many Mumbai heroines\u2019,\u201d Sil remembered. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-116574,msid-76767591\/76767591.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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It was but natural for Banerjee to feel unsettled when she heard about Khan\u2019s demise early on Friday morning. \u201cMy experience with her was precious and valuable. Madhuri Dixit is my idol. Working with Sarojji was like working with my idol\u2019s idol. And what a professional she was! She had a crepe bandage and I suppose was suffering from some knee problem when we were shooting. But not once did I see her doing anything in half-measure,\u201d she remembered.
Just like Sengupta, Banerjee was quite nervous when she was supposed to first perform in front of Khan. \u201cMy heartbeat was racing. I forgot that I was an actress and behaved like a two-year-old in a dance school who was supposed to perform in front of her teacher. I had memorized the song so that I would not have any problems during the rehearsals. I asked her assistants to teach me all the moves so that I could put my best foot forward in front of her,\u201d she recalled. When she came for the rehearsals, Khan didn\u2019t want her to perform separately. \u201cShe came, saw me rehearse for some ten minutes and then left. I was very jittery and was wondering if she had left because I hadn\u2019t made the cut. But her assistants told me that those ten minutes were enough for her to understand that I was on the right track. Had she not liked my performance, they said she would have sat with me for the entire night till I got the things right. I was pleasantly surprised when I heard about this style of functioning,\u201d she said.
Once at the shooting at Lahabari, Khan mesmerized everyone with her \u201cincredible non-compromising attitude\u201d. She never used the monitor but would sit on a chair right next to the camera. \u201cGood or bad, she would be able to identify without needing to watch anything the second time around. Once her assistant told me that she had even mentioned how the \u2018matak-matak\u2019 expressions of my eyes had reminded her of Madhuri,\u201d Banerjee said. Till date, Banerjee gets goosebumps remembering that.
Sil loved the fact that age was hardly a factor for Khan when it came to work. \u201cWith her years of experience, she could have taken it easy. But, that wasn\u2019t Saroj Khan. The sexagenarian choreographer came across as someone who was hungry to do good work. Neither was her physical challenges. While others were tired with the night-long shoot, Sarojji wouldn\u2019t stop unless she was happy with the outcome. Her demise signifies the end of an era in Indian cinema where choreography meant Saroj Khan only,\u201d Sil remembered. <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/photo\/imgsize-223658,msid-76767539\/76767539.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
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Looking back, Banerjee says that it is this trait that also helped her to connect with Khan. \u201cI was happy to be working with a hard-task mater who has been always been a perfectionist. This trait helped me to connect with her as well. I am on the verge of opening my dance school. Had she been alive, I would have definitely connected with her again to seek her blessings. Today, when I heard the news of her demise, I feel fortunate to have got the opportunity to work with her once in my lifetime. I hope and pray that her blessings remain with me forever.\u201d
Khan\u2019s demise, Sil said, signifies the “end of an era in Indian cinema where choreography meant Saroj Khan only. In another world, she must have already got busy making the ‘apsaras’ dance to her steps”. <\/div>\n