Lord Ganesha songs in Hindi films have a history of being shot on a grand scale, complete with dance, colour, dhol-taasha and the works. The filming of these elaborate songs requires a lot of prep and detailed planning. And often these devotional and high-energy tracks lead to the film’s climax, elevating the drama and its visual impact on screen. We delve into the making of some of these beautifully shot Ganpati songs in cinema.

Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra and Sanjay Dutt starrer Agneepath was the remake of Amitabh Bachchan's 1990 release.

Deva Shree Ganesha from Agneepath went on to become one of the most popular Ganesh Chaturthi songs 

Talking about one of the most popular Ganpati songs, Deva Shree Ganesha from Agneepath, choreographer Chinni Prakash says, "Agneepath was Karan Malhotra's debut directorial. An entire chawl set was erected on an open ground in Mumbai's Versova for the film. We began the shoot with a Ganesh pooja of the huge idol. We shot the song over five days on a grand scale, with Hrithik playing the dhol, performing aarti and lots of dancers around. People were screaming, dancing and all of us had goosebumps. We had trials over four days to decide how the kumkum would fall over the idol. We toppled a tank filled with kumkum with six cameras rolling to capture that moment, and everyone including Hrithik Roshan and Priyanka Chopra stayed back to watch the shoot."

Don's (2006) visarjan song Mourya Re remains a favourite with Ganpati pandals. Aradhana Seth, production designer of the film Don, recalls, “Most songs take five days to shoot on a big budget film, Mourya Re took six days, if we count the real-life visarjan day. This particular shoot day was filmed much in advance as we decided to capture the real-life Ganesh visarjan. We sent out five camera crews across Mumbai to film it, viewed the footage and then decided on the idol that director Farhan Akhtar and I wanted to recreate. We also merged a couple of shots of the real crowd and the visarjan into the song. We created an 18-foot idol to match the one from the footage, tracking down an artisan who could do it. Pulling off a song as grand as this using live locations requires detailed planning and collaboration with the choreographer (Rajeev Surti) along with the director. The chawl gateway was not tall enough to take the Ganesh idol out on the truck, so there was lots of loading and unloading while moving to Juhu beach for the visarjan sequence. The shoot of the Ganpati song for SRK’s Don took place at a chawl. Multiple props were created and sourced, like an ektara, 90-100 instruments like dhols and cymbals, flags, coloured powder, flowers and pinatas.”

Sadda Dil Vi Tu, the song from ABCD: Anybody Can Dance has the leads, Lauren Gottlieb, Dharmesh Yelande and others participating in a dance competition.

Director and choreographer Remo D’souza who is a great believer of Ganpati says, “Since the time I first became a director, I ensure I have a Ganpati song in every film, and ABCD: Any Body Can Dance had two such songs in it. I've been a huge believer of Ganpati Bappa since childhood and after I got married, we started bringing Bappa home every year. In ABCD, the first song was with the typical dhol taasha, but music director Sachin-Jigar and I got rapper Hard Kaur to sing the second song Sadda Dil Vi Tu, which leads towards the climax, because it was a dance-based film and we wanted to try something different. There’s a portion in ABCD where the dancers wear Ganesha masks and form 7 tiers to create Ganpati with their bodies — every time the dancers tried, they fell and got injured. My wife Lizelle suggested they don’t consume non-veg on the day of the shoot and eventually, we wrapped up in two days."

Shivaji Satam played father to Sanjay Dutt in Mahesh Manjrekar’s crime drama Vaastav: The Reality. The aarti from the film, Shendur Lal Chadhayo, is popular with Ganesh pandals even two decades after the film’s release.

Shivaji Satam who played father to Sanjay Dutt in Mahesh Manjrekar’s crime drama says, “The utsav of 11 days is celebrated in a grand way in chawls and director Mahesh Manjrekar wanted the celebrations to be a part of the film. We shot the aarti sequence Shendur Lal Chadhayo at Parleshwar Ganesh mandir in one day. Although it may look like a simple, non-glamorous song compared to others, it required a lot of work, filming mid-shots, insets of Sanjay’s entry scene and so on. Reema Lagoo and I did not need glycerin while shooting the aarti, as our eyes were filled with tears for real."

As told to Akash Bhatnagar (MUMBAI MIRROR; July 21, 2020)

I was always inclined towards production and direction, no one ever imagined I’d become an actress. I was in the eighth standard when I started assisting dad (filmmaker Ravi Tandon) during vacations. When I was in the tenth standard, I got a call from ace photographer Shantanu Sheorey’s assistant Amrita Sehgal. They were looking for new models and wanted to do a photoshoot with me. I told her my dad will get back to them and forgot all about it. But she was persistent and promised me a portfolio by Shantanu, which is when I spoke to dad who left the choice to me. And I finally said “yes” to Amrita.

Those pictures went around, and I got my first ad for a shampoo brand. I interned with ad guru Prahlad Kakkar during my summer break and after graduating, joined him full time. I became the in-house model who would fill up for absentees. I was still just a lowly assistant, but everyone would tell me I was made for the screen. I didn’t take them seriously.

Then, one day, while hanging out with friends at a pizzeria, I was spotted by the late director Anant Balani and Vivek Vaswani. They recognised me as Ravi Tandon’s daughter and got in touch with producer G P Sippy saab. I’d done a couple of ads with Salman’s (Khan) friend, Bunty Walia, who was also a model then. A few days later, when I was shooting for an ad in Bandra, Bunty called, asking me to step out of the studio. Outside, he wondered if I’d do a film with Salman, who was also there with him. I was so shocked, I only mumbled that I’d have to ask dad. Vivek and Sippy saab called him and before I knew it, I was signed for Patthar Ke Phool.

I’d been offered a couple of films before that, including Fateh, Heer Ranjha, Jungle and a project by Anwar Ali. I refused all of them and only gave my nod to Patthar Ke Phool because my colleagues were huge Salman fans and told me they would swing by my set to watch him from far. After that, I could quit acting if I wanted to.

Two days after I gave my nod, we had a photoshoot with Sheena, Ramesh Sippy’s daughter. I didn’t even have a stylist and had to wear Sheena’s clothes. I didn’t even get a makeup man and had never acted in my life. They made it easy for me. For the first shot, I had to excitedly walk into the living room with a “Hi Daddy”. It still took five takes to be okayed, but Manohar Singh ji, who was playing my dad, was very sweet and encouraging.

After a couple of scenes with him, they moved on to some songs with Salman. I had no training in dance and only after we started shooting, I joined Kathak maestro Gopi Krishna ji to learn adas and expressions for two months. While I was shooting those songs, I was simultaneously giving my first-year junior college exams. Choreographers Chinni Prakash ji and Rekha still remind me how I’d bring my textbooks to the set and study in a corner.

Salman and I first shot for the skating song, “Tumse Jo Dekhte Hi”, and had our first childish squabble while doing a photo shoot for “Kabhi Tu Chaliya Lagta Hai” over bubble gum.

Avijit Ghosh (THE TIMES OF INDIA; July 4, 2020)

Saroj Khan (71), who composed the signature moves that paved way for Madhuri Dixit’s rise to stardom, died of cardiac arrest in a Mumbai hospital on Friday. She bagged eight Filmfare awards, a record for a choreographer, reports Avijit Ghosh. Saroj’s shimmies were not confined to Madhuri’s ‘Ek Do Teen’ (Tezaab) and ‘Choli Ke Peechhe’ (Khalnayak), but added another layer to Sridevi’s iconic ‘Hawa Hawaai’ (Mr India), or even the breathtaking steps of Aishwarya Rai-Madhuri duo in ‘Dola Re Dola’ (Devdas). “I’m devastated by the loss of my friend and guru... I will miss you…” Madhuri tweeted.

Saroj Khan, who tossed aside gender barriers in the male-dominated world of choreographers in Hindi cinema and composed the signature moves that paved Madhuri Dixit’s rise to stardom in the 1980s, passed away on Friday. She was 71. She died of cardiac arrest at Mumbai’s Guru Nanak Hospital, where she was admitted in June after developing breathing problems, news agency ANI reported.

Tracks choreographed by Saroj for Madhuri such as Ek Do Teen (Tezaab), Choli Ke Peechhe Kya Hai (Khalnayak), Dhak Dhak Karne Laga (Beta) and Humko Aaj Kal Hai (Sailaab) blended sensuality with rhythm; the jhatkas and mudras are aped at dance parties and ‘ladies’ sangeet ceremonies even today.

No choreographer, male or female, has won as many Filmfare awards: eight.

“I'm devastated by the loss of my friend and guru, Saroj Khan. Will always be grateful for her work in helping me reach my full potential in danc…” Dixit tweeted.

It wasn’t just Madhuri. Saroj’s shimmies and shakes made Sridevi’s Hawa hawaai and the snake dances of Nagina iconic. But it was the symphonic sway of Dola Re Dola (Devdas), where Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri breathtakingly match steps and smiles that fetched Saroj a National Award for best choreography. “Nobody would have dreamt of doing what she did in Dola Re Dola,” said fellow choreographer Chinni Prakash.

The award was worthy recognition for decades of hard work in a life that defeated extreme poverty. Born Nirmala, her Punjabi-Sindhi parents left Karachi for Bombay during the Partition. The family lived in a one-room tenement in Mahim. A neighbour who ran a food stall offered them the unsold leftovers. “I was raised on pyaaj ki bhajiya (onion fritters) and bread,” she said in the 2014 documentary, The Saroj Khan Story.

Saroj worked as a child actor (Nazrana, Aagosh), a group dancer (Aaiyye meherbaan, Howrah Bridge), even trained as a nurse, before becoming assistant to noted dance director B Sohanlal.

“She trained under my uncle Sohanlal-ji, learnt Indian folk, classical gestures and Indo-Western style movements,” said Prakash. In Nidhi Tuli’s documentary, Saroj also recalls falling in love with Sohanlal, bearing a child and then parting. She later married businessman Sardar Roshan Khan.

Choreography was a male preserve in Bombay cinema -- P L Raj, Gopi Krishna, Badri Prasad, Kamal, Herman Benjamin, to name a few. “She was the first female choreographer in north India and had a tough time entering the field. Girls were only assistants then,” says Chinni Prakash.

She got her break in actress Sadhana’s production Geeta Mera Naam (1974). Among those who backed her was film-maker Subhash Ghai. “However, it was not until Ghai’s Hero (1983) that Khan became a name to be reckoned with,” says Encyclopaedia of Hindi Cinema.

Prakash recalled how she acted out expressions for Madhuri or Sridevi. “Her adayaein (facial expressions), her hand movements were her specialty,” he said. In a post, film sociologist Susmita Dasgupta too said the choreographer made the song reside in the body of the dancer. “Saroj Khan used the conventional formula to let the body carry the song,” she wrote.

Her success opened the doors for other women choreographers. Director-choreographer Farah Khan posted, “…U were an inspiration to many, myself included. Thank you for the songs.”
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‘She gave lyrics meaning in dance’

Actor Amitabh Bachchan reminisced about Saroj Khan in his blog. 'Masterji' to every actor worth their dancing shoes, Bachchan with his trademark moves had caught her attention and received “shagun” — a one rupee coin that she was known to gift dancers who stood out. He also recalled the time she was pregnant during a shoot. “At one point I saw her, quite alarmingly, finding the foetus had shifted in her stomach and she simply unabashedly pushed it into place, and carried on dancing.” The actor said she gave the industry “the art of converting the lyrics in a song to a meaning in dance”.

Sangeeta Yadav (HINDUSTAN TIMES; December 2, 2019)

From setting trends of oversized shirts to funny dialogues and dance moves that were later made into memes, Suniel Shetty hogged all the limelight with his double role as a cop and a criminal in Gopi Kishan — the cult comedy that completes silver jubilee today.

Walking down memory lane, the 58-year-old says, “Before Gopi Kishan, nobody was willing to cast me in comedies. I’d only get action film offers. So, when director Deepak Shivdasani offered me the role, I jumped on it. It opened the doors of comedy for me and I went on to do films like Hera Pheri.”

Suniel further adds, “It was one of the toughest films to shoot. I had to keep changing my look for the double role. I picked up Gopi’s way of pulling his trousers from Director Rajiv Rai’s CFO.”

The film is remembered for its famous one-liner, Mere Do Do Baap. “I never imagined that such simple dialogues would become so iconic. I wonder what the child actor, who mouthed the lines is doing these days,” he says, adding, “Even Athiya, after watching the film, started saying, ‘Mere Do Do Baap’ and I used to tell her, ‘No, no Athiya… it’s not funny.’ She loved repeating it (laughs).”

Suniel says that the 1994 film was one of the first few to begin the trend of remake of movies down South. “It’s one of the first Bollywood films remade from Tamil films. (Gopi Kishan is a remake of the 1990 Tamil film Avasara Police 100). The Haye Hukku song with jeans and oversized shirt became a trendsetter. Choreographer Chinni Prakash knew that I’m not a good dancer, but still he made me match up to Lolo’s (Karisma Kapoor) moves. Some of them have now become memes,” says Suniel.

Not many know that Suniel met with an accident and was limping in the song Chatri Naa Khol Barsat Mei, “That time I used to shoot from 9 pm to 5 am for Mohra and 9 am to 6 pm for Gopi Kishan. While shooting for Mohra, I had a ligament tear. The doctors had advised me bed rest and surgery, but I strapped a bandage on my knee and did the entire song.”

And, if the film is remade now, who would Suniel want to play his role? He replies, “Ranveer Singh or Varun Dhawan. They are brilliant.”

Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 28, 2016)

When Chinese filmmaker-actor Wang Baoqiang decided to set the sequel to his 2012 action-comedy, Lost In Thailand, in India, he wanted to recreate the Bull King from the 1995 Hong Kong fantasy-comedy, A Chinese Odyssey. "It's the first time that a non-Chinese man is up to play the Bull King," reveals Karnal-based actor Vikramjeet Virk, who was selected from over 200 models. "I was told that the look would be similar to Gerard Butler's in 300 so I underwent rigorous bodybuilding training and was asked to grow out my beard, moustache and hair," says the six-foot-three actor.

Titled Buddies In India, over 60 per cent of the Christmas release was shot in Rajasthan over a three-month schedule beginning February. "The Bull King is large and fierce but also has a quirky, humorous and protective side," Virk says, adding that choreographer Chinni Prakash known for the Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone song, "Lungi Dance" from Chennai Express, was flown down to Jodhpur to re-create a similar song.

"Mirchi" has the Bull King announcing a chilli eating competition in his kingdom. There are over 300 Chinese and Indians who eat, dance and celebrate with the winner. "It wasn't easy to film in 50-52 degrees in Jodhpur on an outdoor set with a Chinese crew. But they were an extremely professional unit," says Virk, adding that after all day rehearsals the shot would wrap up within 30 minutes.

The Bull King's entry was one of the final shots in which Virk jumps from a 30-feet pedestal on a set with 10-15 bull statues and paintings. And the director, Wang was sure Virk would either crashland or break the stage.

"When I did the jump in the first take, everybody cheered and Wang, for the first time, laughed and threw a party with his new Indian friends instead of continuing with the shoot," Virk signs off with a laugh.