EXCLUSIVE: Vijay Ganguly talks about choreographing Ranbir Kapoor’s introductory scene in Animal and why moonwalk was added: “Ranvijay tells his father that he badly wanted to attend Michael Jackson concert. It’s a very subtle thing” : Bollywood News

Did you ever think the introductory scene of Ranbir Kapoor in Animal will become a rage?
Not at all. We shot it quite early when the shoot had just started. The makers had just finished the Kashmir schedule, where the song ‘Hua Main’acwas shot. They came back and that’s when we shot this portion. I was unsure whether or not it’ll be retained in the final cut. A lot of times, such kinds of musical sequences, which are not extly songs, are chopped out.

EXCLUSIVE: Vijay Ganguly talks about choreographing Ranbir Kapoor’s introductory scene in Animal and why moonwalk was added: “Ranvijay tells his father that he badly wanted to attend Michael Jackson concert. It’s a very subtle thing”

How did you bag this project?
I have worked with Ranbir Kapoor a lot. During Jagga Jasoos (2017), I was an assistant director. It went on for almost 3 ½ to 4 years. Every time a new year began, we used to wish RK a happy new year. And he would joke, ‘Kya baar baar happy new year wish kar raha hai. 4 saal se wish kar raha hai’! He’s too amazing.

As for the introductory piece of RK in Animal, it had gone to a lot of choreographers earlier. Then it came to me from T-Series. I met Sandeep Reddy Vanga sir, and he honestly told me that he approached a lot of choreographers but he didn't like the dance steps that they showed him. He explained to me the scene and the character. We had to understand what the character would do in such a situation. That’s often the most difficult part. Songs mein dance fatafat ho jaata hai. But when you have to do something that pertains to the character, then you have to know what the film is all about, how the character behaves etc. I then rehearsed with my assistant Abhishek and sent them our video. Sandeep sir loved it and said it was the best choreography he had seen.

Then we made some changes based on the suggestion. We added the Michael Jackson moonwalk. If you remember, Ranvijay (Ranbir Kapoor) tells his father in the end that there was a Michael Jackson concert that he badly wanted to attend as a child. It’s a very subtle thing. We also added Michael Jackson’s pelvic moves which didn’t make it to the final cut. We rehearsed with Ranbir for 3 days in the basement of his house. We used to jam together, and he used to come up with a lot of suggestions. Eventually, we locked the steps. We shot for a piece which was approximately 2 or 2 ½ minutes long. We shot it in 1 day. I knew even then that yeh thoda katega because at the end of the day, the story is most important in a film.

It worked well in all respects. The original song ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa’ in Roja (1992) was a slow-moving track. But the Threeory band added a nice touch and then the choreography and presentation took it to another level…
Sandeep sir was very clear about what he wanted. He explained to us that this is a track that he wants to be played during Ranbir’s entry. He made us listen to the track. And it was unusual. He found it from somewhere and the artists also feature in the film. And that was impressive as very few people would think that way.

When did you realize that the scene had gone viral?
I couldn’t see the film for the first two days. But I kept seeing a lot of Instagram posts. It is an important part of our lives. Half of our work reaches people thanks to social media. So, I was scrolling and saw the video. I was like ‘Yeh toh bada mazedaar hai’! I eventually saw the film on the big screen. Ranbir is too good. Everyone is praising him for his amazing work in Animal. But he has been phenomenal since the first film. I am a big fan of Ranbir and I watch all his films.

It has come to light that a choreographer, Aata Sandeep, is taking credit for this dance piece. You even called him out on your Instagram post. What exactly happened?
One of the assistants sent his post and groused ‘Yeh toh humne kiya hai’. I had not seen the film until then. But when I saw the video, I also realized that it is exactly what we shot. Often, it happens when filmmakers don’t like our work and they reshoot it with a different choreographer. It happens with all creative people. But in the case of Animal, it was our work without a doubt. I wondered how could someone blatantly take credit for it and even give interviews to newspapers?

I put up a story and also messaged this gentleman, saying that it’s not ethical to (take credit). He maintained that he had choreographed it. I asked him how that was possible. He replied that he was given the song by the makers, and he sent a video of how the dance step should be. I don’t deny that he must have been approached. But his choreography was rejected and mine was approved. But I guess he assumed that since he had sent his choreography video, he was on board. But there has to be some common sense that you were not present on the set, and you’ve not choreographed with the actor! He should get his facts right. I tried to explain this to him, and he said that he’ll speak to the producers. I spoke with T-Series, and they assured me that I have been credited.

Even in the past, people have taken credit. But it’s time someone speaks about it.

Is there any possibility you’ll also come on board for Animal Park?
I won’t know till the film is mounted and we get the call. Sandeep sir’s films usually don’t have choreographed songs, be it Arjun Reddy (2017) or Kabir Singh (2019). He said that the songs usually appear in the background and he himself choreographs it. In the film, this is the only dance piece apart from Bobby Deol sir’s entry.

You worked on the song ‘Main Parwana’ in Pippa and the song is a rage on Instagram. It is being talked about more than the film. I am sure it’s not something you would have anticipated that the song would unleash such craze…
Exactly. We didn’t expect it. This 5-minute-long song was filmed in just 9 or 10 shots. While it was being filmed, I was putting the approved shots on the edit. When the shoot was done, I took the last shot, and my edit was ready. Director Raja Krishna Menon sir, DOP Priya Seth ma’am and all others sat and saw how the song looked before the director shouted, ‘Pack Up’. We knew this song was lovely, but you always have a doubt when you create something. It’s not the usual track, shot with 200 dancers. We were not sure whether the audience would like it.

Moreover, when a film releases in the theatre, the songs are promoted a lot as they want to entice people to buy the ticket. With an OTT release, the film as a whole gets promoted and songs are not that important to be pushed.

With Pippa, the film was released first. Then, Ishaan Khatter and I collaborated on a post. Suddenly, people realized that A R Rahman’s composition was beautiful and Arijit Singh’s singing connected with the audience. Then they saw the video and they loved it too. People started asking ‘Which film is this’. So, the whole process was vice versa, compared to what happens with a theatrical release. I am so glad there’s social media. Without social media, ‘Main Parwana’ wouldn’t have reached people. Earlier, it used to feel like a task to upload posts. Now, I realize it’s a blessing.

How many days did it take to rehearse?
We were supposed to shoot the song in the first schedule. The makers recced a lot of real-life locations. But we didn’t get the right place. Hence, the decision was taken to shoot the whole film first and the song at the end. This led to a delay in 8-9 months for the song shoot. I had the song with me for 9 months and it gave me a lot of time to think. We had choreographed it earlier but in these 9 months, we improved the steps. Ishaan came in and as we jammed, the choreography became even better. So, it was a blessing in disguise that it didn’t happen at the very beginning of the shoot.

How many days did it take to shoot the song?
There’s a scene before the song commences. So, the talkie portion along with the song was shot in 4 days.

Ishaan is superb and even the Russian actress Leysan Karimova is a great find…
We were not getting the right girl and we were going mad! We required a girl who can speak Russian and can dance well. We got a lot of great dancers, but they didn’t know the language. The girls who can speak Russian as well as dance were in the UK and other countries. Due to flight restrictions, it was not possible to fly them down. Leysan Karimova and one more girl were shortlisted; both were in Mumbai. Leysan had the right expressions and hence, we locked her. She was not the best dancer and we made slight changes accordingly to the dance. Nevertheless, things fell into place very well.

You choreographed three songs in Sam Bahadur. The one featuring Kalki Koechlin got cut I believe…
Yes. I hope it’s out on digital. It’s something to watch out for. I also choreographed ‘Badhte Chalo’. People often ask me ki ‘aise gaane mein aapne kya kiya hai’. I reply, ‘Humne iss gaane ko bhi choreograph kiya hai’! If you see, the way soldiers are marching and shouting war cries, it’s all choreography. I take it as a compliment that you don’t see my work because you feel it’s a part of the film and not a typical song as such.

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The song ‘Itni Si Baat’ featuring Vicky Kaushal and Sanya Malhotra is sweet…
It is. Even Meghna Gulzar ma’am had never done a choreographed song in any of her films before. She was skeptical. She would be like ‘Bahut zyada dance ho raha hai’. I would tell her ‘Dance song mein dance toh hoga na’! I was also pushing for lip-syncing. Meghna ma’am said ‘Ek toh hum choreography already kar rahe hai and now you want lip sync as well?’. I understood her point and dropped the idea (laughs)!

I believe you were also a child actor in your father Anil Ganguly’s films like Saaheb (1985)…
Oh God, why do you have to ask me this question (laughs)! I was 5 years old then. My dad used to believe that ‘mere bacche acting karenge toh meri film chalegi’. Rupali and I, hence, were there in several of his films. We were the lucky charm for him (smiles).

Also Read: 7 Lessons that Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Animal has taught the entire Bollywood