Saroj Khan turns Nargis Fakhri into a Bengali housewife

Vyjayanthimala, Madhuri Dixit and Sridevi are known to have a tough time doing her dance steps. So it was with some amount of surprise and shock that one heard of the legendary choreographer Saroj Khan being flown to Hyderabad on Friday to shoot an ad featuring Nargis Fakhri as a Bengali housewife, directed by Mani Shankar.
Ambitious to the hilt Mani wanted Nargis to dance as a Bengali woman in a nine-yard saree.A tall order considering Nargis barely looks Indian. Sure enough, there was fireworks, as Saroj Khan never known to compromise with her dance movements, found herself giving the Rockstar actress steps that Madhuri Dixit had a tough time doing in Ek do teen (Tezaab) and Humko aajkal hai intezaar (Sailaab).
Says an eyewitness from the location in Hyderabad, “Why only Nargis? The most accomplished dancers find it tough to follow Sarojji’s steps. Yes, there was a certain degree of uncertainty and impatience on location. To her credit, Nargis carried off the Bengali look beautifully. As for the steps she has been learning Kathak regularly and she’s an eager learner. Sarojji didn’t simplify the steps because Nargis is not Indian. It was up to Nargis master the intricate steps. She finally managed it beautifully.”
However sources say it wasn’t easy for Ms Fakhri to get her steps right. Says an eyewitness from on location. “Sarojji had flown in with six dancers who were all first-rate at their work. Nargis has to match steps with the expert chorus dancers. The Bengali sari, jewellery, and a big bindi on her forehead made her uncomfortable. She had never dressed up this way. And on top of that, she had to dance like Madhuri Dixit in the song Dola re dola in Devdas. The girl was in tears initially but bravely delivered.”
Says Saroj Khan appreciatively, “We had to shoot some intricate steps. She had to do some dance movements like a fish gliding in the water. Nargis managed beautifully. She’s a hardworking girl.”