As this is a dance blog and we all know no dance is complete without its choreography. And hence we start a new segment on the lives of Choreographers of India making it a small tribute section. And to start this segment I think no other name would be perfect to start off other then Saroj Khan.
Saroj Khan as we all know will be joining as an addition to the judge’s panel. Though she will not be regular and will be filling in whenever possible, my guess says maybe she will fill in every time Javed will be busy with his shooting schedules. Maybe or maybe not – it’s only an assumption so please don’t hold your guns on me 
But if you know some news different then mine, please feel free to share it with us.
Back to the tribute!
It is my pure honor to pay this tribute to Saroj Khan - the much talented and most deserving lady choreographer of Indian Cinema. Nirmala Sadhu Khan aka Saroj Khan was born on November 22nd 1949 and has choreographed more then 200 films till date. She has made such a name for herself that today if Choreography is talked about and Saroj Khan’s name not there is not possible. She has given many hits to the Indian Cinema and all those numbers are still the craze and much talked about even among the teenagers. You will find many, dancing away to glory on “Main teri Dushman” from Nagin to “Ek do teen” from Tezaab or even to the latest “megha re megha” from movie Guru. Including the movies that we just talked about, she also choreographed hits like Mr. India, Beta, Goal, Don, Fanaa, Veer Zaara, Saathiya, Devdas, Lagaan, Taal, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jaayenge, Mohra, Chandni, Fiza and many more.
On her take on Bollywood current dancing she says: “Western dance is given preference today. Today no body has to be a dancer to dance in films! Any skimpily clad model like girl comes, shakes her leg and gets away with it! Bollywood dancing has lost its magic. Even the choreographers have lost their individuality. You can’t tell who has choreographed a particular dance. This was not the case before!”
Her favorite in Bollywood actors and actresses are Sridevi, Madhuri and Govinda. She feels the current batch pretends like they know dancing and in her own words she says: “They act like they know everything! Even before you start teaching them they nod their head and act as if they know it all! I remember even dancers like Vijantimala and Waheeda Rehmaan used to closely pay attention to what their choreographers used to teach them! The urge to learn is not seen today. No one can be compared to the likes of Madhuri and Sridevi when it comes to dancing to date.”
She is also known to be rough when she gets to her work done after all teaching to those who do not know dance especially with big time attitudes is not a joke. But she succeeds each time and with grace and makes sure to get full points and justice for her work.
She started her work when she was only thirteen years of age. They say success does not come without pain. Nothing is easy in this world and one must go through the tough tests to prove one’s capability in this world. The same was the case for Saroj Khan. Life was never a bed of roses even in her childhood days. After partition when her family moved, she started to work hard as a child artist to earn her living. She also had a painful first marriage when she was married to a 43 year old when she was just 13 and had his first child at 14. But nothing could stop for this positive young girl. As she struggled her days from being a child artist to a group dancer then emerged to the position of an assistant dance master to finally her destination as a Choreographer. Her second wedding got her breath of fresh air. She has a son – a well known choreographer again who goes by the name Raju Khan. She is a true motivational living example that anyone can learn loads from.
Even though she got her first break in movies in year 1974, 1983 had Saroj Khan’s name written all over. It was this year when she got her first commercial success and became a name to crave for in choreography. As they say believe in yourself and stay positive, time will change and hence there was no stopping for her beyond this point. Fruits were finally paid off for all her hard work.
Today Saroj Khan - a senior in her field is sought for perfection. She also is participating in many shows for judging the talent. She is one name who gave a new name and status to the career in choreography. Many other talents followed her and started opting for choreography as their career. She brought not only a new trend but also turned the tide around in this field. There is so much that the current batch of choreographers can learn from her. Some of her take on present choreography is: “Nowadays each and every song in a movie looks almost the same, mainly the item numbers. There is no specific movement, which is seen. But some years back this was not the case. Each song had its own unique steps; for example, take the Dhak Dhak song by Madhuri. The scenario has changed in the past 4-5 years. I feel that we should have different songs with different movements and steps. We have such a rich culture but we are just aping the west. We should stick to our roots and incorporate forms like folk, bhangra, etc in mainstream choreography.”
One piece of advice that she likes to give to all those aspirant choreographers is: “I just wish to tell them that they should come up with something new every time. Be creative in your steps. Don’t use common dance steps. This is how one can create a unique style of dancing and also make their mark in the industry. Make use of our rich Indian culture in your choreography. “
A very good advice indeed!
As she gets all geared up to celebrate her 59th birthday on this November 22nd, we at BoogieWoogieIndia.Com would like to wish her a Very Happy Birthday and we wish her great health and success all the way. Aap jeeye hazaro saal, Saal ke din ho pachaas hazaar!!
“We love you Saroj – thanks for being you. Every job that you did is a beautiful portrait in itself – a true master piece that will be remembered forever. Thanks for autographing your work with excellence each and every time. God Bless You!!
Friends - do join us on November 22nd to celebrate Saroj’s birthday right here at your own blog.
Have a wonderful and blessed day!!
Friends as today is our Saroj Ji’s birthday, it is time that we go a little back in memory lane and enjoy some of the finest choreographed songs. It is tough to pick from wonderful 200 plus movies but here are few for you to relish and enjoy your weekend.
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