Twinkle-toed wonder

Rahul Shetty is the latest toast of the choreographer circuit in Bollywood having made Prabhudeva move to his beats in Street Dancer 3D

At 28, he is one of the most sought after choreographers in Bollywood. After all, he is 70 reality shows old and has just choreographed Prabhudeva in Street Dancer 3D. Rahul Shetty is no stranger to stardom, having made Prabhudeva move to the rhythm of the wildly popular track ‘Happy Hour Mein’ in the dance blockbuster ABCD 2.

Rahul has choreographed all the songs in Street Dancer 3D starring Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor and Prabhudeva. “I choreographed Prabhu Sir for the first time when I was 25, for ABCD 2, and now for the ‘Muqabla’ number in Street Dancer 3D. Honestly, it still has to sink in — the realisation that I choreographed Prabhu Sir himself for that iconic number. Varun is like my elder brother and working with him was more like vibing with a friend than with a superstar. Shraddha is a born performer and though she joined the film late, she cued in soon enough with superb performances. The credit goes to the entire cast of the movie in putting their best foot forward. It has been a collective effort,” shares Rahul, his eyes shining.

“I worked as a child artiste for a year in ‘Kya Masti Kya Dhoom’ show on Star Plus,” he recalls. Followed the days when Rahul would travel from Dombivili to Santacruz and put in 12-14 hours of dance, every day. “Consistency and hard work is the key,” he puts in succinctly. “These days, with social media, you have easy access to countless videos and dance forms that you can practise. When I started out, there was only Bollywood dance, as I was not inclined towards the classic forms.”

Rahul went on to work as a child back-up dancer in many Bollywood movies and commercials. With over two decades in the film industry, he has an enviable portfolio of films to his credit including Race 3, Baaghi 2 and Housefull 4. Rahul counts his ability to keep updating himself on what is trending as a big asset. “I have learnt to keep learning,” he says, having worked with the best names in the business, including Remo D Souza and Ahmed Khan. Consistent workshops with international artistes also helped, he adds.

What makes for a good choreographer? “Patience is vital,” says Rahul, “as often, you get to work with actors who are not so fabulous at dancing. The real challenge then is to make them look good. The knowledge of camera angles is a big asset in addition to expertise in authentic dance forms,” he shares, having started out in reality shows himself and then having picked up an in-depth understanding of camera movements while working on films with leading choreographers. “And yes, there is money to be made, depending on your level of proficiency and your quality of work. Be consistent and patient and success will be yours,” he signs off, basking in the viral popularity of the ‘chamiya’ song featuring DJ Bravo and Shakti that he has choreographed.

What’s next? “More fantastic videos to watch out for!” he smiles. “I am working towards fulfilling my dream of setting up my own dance academy soon to educate everyone about authentic, contemporary dance forms. I hope to bring in international dance faculty to share their expertise.”