Jeet is a stylish dancer; he will do anything if it's a value add to the film, says choreographer Imran Sardhariya

Imran Sardhariya has been one of the most popular choreographers in Kannada cinema for two decades, and yet, his excitement knows no bounds as his debut Bengali film gears up for release. Imran got to work with Bangla superstar Jeet in the upcoming Raavan. “The film has four songs, three of which I have choreographed. The fourth, a montage song, was handled by the director, MN Raj. The songs that I have choreographed were all shot in Thailand, two of which, Keu Jaane Na and You Are My Love, have been released in the run-up to the film’s theatrical outing,” says Imran.

For Keu Jaane Na, the first song from Raavan, a romantic melody, which, was quite different for Imran’s style, who is known for his upbeat dance numbers. “Yes, a lot of people associate me with dance numbers, but I am also the choreographer who handled hardcore romantic numbers in Sanju Weds Geetha, Mynaa, Maleyalli Jotheyalli, where the focus is on the emotions, choice of shots, attire, when and how the lead pair has to look at each other, hold each other, etc. I am mostly known for the dance numbers with the late Puneeth Rajkumar (Jackie, Anna Bond), no doubt. But I love to do romantic numbers too, which I got to do with Jeet’s Raavan. Keu Jaane Na was about capturing romance amid brilliant settings, while the second song, You Are My Love, is a cute dance number,” says Imran, who recently shared some behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot of the song.

As for shooting the songs in Thailand, a popular destination for filmmakers across the country, Imran says, "We had initially planned to shoot the songs in Dubai and even did a recce there for locations, but at the time, there were still a lot of pandemic-related restrictions and we couldn't work within that framework and decided to head to Thailand instead. But even there, the team was clear that they did not want to shoot in the same locations they'd been to earlier for other films, so we scouted for about 15-16 spots that are relatively fresh and could be accessed only on payment. We wanted to bring in a sense of exclusivity. The team wanted the production values to come across in the songs too," he says.   

But is Jeet a good dancer? “Jeet is a stylish dancer. If I have to compare him with any other actor, I would say he is like Aamir Khan, in the sense that he will do anything if it adds value to the film. And if that is dance, he will leave no stone unturned to make sure he has perfected it, like in the case of the Malang song from Dhoom 4 or Har Funn Maula from Koi Jaane Na. Jeet will dance in his films only if it adds value to the narrative. I know that his fans love to watch him dance, so I tried something stylish, cute and fresh for You Are My Love,” he says.