Has Bollywood has contributed to a forgetting of classical dance traditions?
I don’t think it’s any one thing, like dance. I think we as a society are getting too caught up in the West and not paying enough attention to our own heritage. We’ve become very materialistic as a society and Bollywood just reflects that. As a classically trained dancer in Bollywood, does it irk you when you’re asked to dance in the usual filmi way? See, I am a dancer. You give me anything to dance to and I’ll love it. For instance, Baawri (the song) with Hrithik Roshan, from my latest movie, is a lovely Rajasthani number. We actually shot in a circus tent, surrounded by artistes from India and abroad. Zoya (Akhtar, the director) wanted it to be very Indian, but at the same time very contemporary, so that fit very well into the way I think as well. Your style of dance is a particularly taxing one. How do you maintain that level of stamina and precision? Well, my training routine is pretty intense, as our style of dance requires a lot of discipline. My troupe and I use a mixture of pan
