Put your best foot forward
Strap on those dancing shoes and feel the excitement of an intensive routine as Desi Hoppers bring StreetMation to town this weekend
With a dream to prove themselves on an international platform and take their love for dance to the next level, Shantanu Maheshwari, Macedon Dmello and Nimit Kotian formed their dance crew Deshi Hoppers. They collaborated with BBC WorlWide and Disney Bindass, who gave them just the push that was needed. They gave up on every other activity to pursue their passion for dance and last year proudly won the World of Dance competition held in Los Angeles. They also participated in America’s Got Talent and cleared the first round. In the city this weekend for a workshop, we got talking to Palkhi Malhotra, the founder of the show Bindaas Naach which got these dancers together. Palkhi lets you in on what to expect at the event, what the team hopes to achieve and why they are so passionate about dance.
Putting together the best dancers from across the country, this six man troupe is a force to reckon with. Apart from Shantanu, Macedon (aka Macee) and Nimit, who are the founding members, the team also includes Rohan Vyas, Niraj Lama (aka Jack) and Subhash Naidu. All of these dancers are not only some of the best you will find but are also only aiming at getting better every day.
“All of them come from extremely varied backgrounds but dance, in more ways than one, unites them. Whether they dance to pay bills, are celebrity choreographers or dancers or have fought all odds to get so good, their only priority is to change the way dance is perceived as a profession in India as well as make the country proud internationally,” Palkhi tells us. Apart from Bindaas Naach, she is also the founder of shows like Girls on Top, Dil Dosti Dance and Dil Mill Gaye.
The Desi Hoppers were the first dance crew to represent India at the World of Dance Championship and bring back home the title of too. They were also the crowd favourite at the same championship. Keeping in tune with wanting to do something different, they started StreeMation which is a mix of street dance and animation. The idea was to stick to their roots, yet do something out of the box. Their two-day workshop in Pune will be extremely intense and will consist of a lot of warm-up and training exercises.
When asked what makes them so passionate about dancing, Palkhi tells us that for the team the fact that dance is looked down upon as a profession is a huge driving force. This is something that they are convinced on changing and representing Indian talent internationally will help inspire more people to dance, which will, in return, change how the art form is perceived. Their passion for dance also keeps them motivated to excel in every rehearsal and performance.
“To me, dance represents a celebration. It is a way of communicating through movement. I know for a fact that shows like Dil Dosti Dance and Bindaas Naach have inspired many to start dancing and this is a huge achievement for us as a team,” she adds.
When: August 14 & 15, 1 pm to 4 pm
Where: University Women’s Association, Gokhale Nagar
Originally published on The Golden Sparrow
