'We love delhi’s shady side'

The Twilight Players aka the ‘Dev D’ dudes love Paharganj and butter chicken
Indian women should take fashion tips from their bijis, chachis, mamis and mummyjis” – fashion advice from The Twilight Players performer, Sinbad Phgura, whose only plea to “every Indian girl worth her Guccis” is to stick to salwaar kameezes and saris because they are “much hotter anyway”.
The Twilight Players, a fraternal dance troupe, better known as ‘The “Dev D” dudes’, are every bit the British Punjabi performers. First seen for a short while in Anurag Kashyap’s “Dev D”, these boys love their butter chicken with a lot of butter and their women with a lot of curves. Their dance form – ‘open hand’ – is something they’ve perfected over the years...
Open Hand: where MJ got his signature dance moves Sinbad, the oldest of the three, belies his 40-odd years when he takes to the stage and displays the sort of energy and passion that would put men half his age to shame. “The sort of dance we do is very classic and this look goes with it. Our look is inspired from the 50s and 60s, although the dance came out in the 70s. Our dance style also involves mambo and other forms from the 50s, so our look is very vintage. We’re old fashioned,” says Sinbad, who seems particularly peppy in his retro-chic get-up with a brimmed hat placed askew. The open hand dance is characterized by jerky, explosive moves, gymnastics, interactive mime, acrobatics and gravity-defying steps. Michael Jackson’s signature dance moves reportedly originated from this school of dance.
Shady Indian places: What makes them so unique? This troupe of Indian origin feels there’s an originality that is so native to India that it cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world. “Our family is from Punjab, so we’re Punjabi. This is nothing new, we’re used to it. Although, since we’re from the Punjab countryside, cities like Delhi and Bombay are kind of new. We have been to Paharganj and we think ‘shady’ areas are cool. We went there when we were shooting for “Dev D”. We like it when things are a bit off-hand because a clean shopping mall is something you will find in Hong Kong or London and they’re all the same, so there’s not much different. So this is something that’s unique to India,” says Sinbad.
Punjabis: Food, food and more food The boys have visited the country a lot of times after their film debut and say they can’t get enough. “We’ve come back to India a few times. We have done a few shows, a musical for Christmas, a musical with Rohan Sippy called “Love And All That Jazz”. We appreciate that people have accepted us and talk about us,” says Ammo Too Sweet, the second band member who also happens to be a vegetarian. “I am a healthy vegetarian,” he says, and before you believe him, he adds, “I like veggie burgers with lots of cheese and stuff. Anything with no meat and lots of chips. I am a veg junkie.”
On the other hand, Sinbad admits he loves his non-vegetarian fare. “I’m a meat eater in every sense of the word. It’s a diet I have to keep for my role in the group. I realize time has gone by and I am gaining weight but that’s not a problem, I have to look like the older one out of us three,” he says. Jimmi The Quiff, who has been quietly observing his troupe members do all this talking, lights up when we mention food. “I love the Chinese food that you get in India. The typical Punjabified Chinese is great; India has its own take on it. Chilli chicken is my favourite,” he says smiling.