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."

When director-choreographer Remo D’Souza suffered a heart attack recently, his family and friends were shaken up. The maker of films like ABCD: Any Body Can Dance, Race 3 and Street Dancer 3D is known to be a fitness buff.

So, when everyone got to know about his heart attack, they initially couldn’t believe it. “Yes, everyone was shocked. Frankly, I am shocked myself! Though, I am happy that I am doing better now, and the doctors have checked on me and said that my heart is getting back to normal,” says Remo while talking to Bombay Times.

Recalling the day that it all happened, Remo says, “It was just a regular day. I had my breakfast and went to the gym. Lizelle (wife) and I share the same trainer, who was already training her. So, I was waiting for my turn, and in the meanwhile, I did some brisk walking on the treadmill and stretching on the foam roller. Then, I was just sitting idle, waiting for my turn. As soon as Lizelle finished, I got up, but I started feeling pain at the center of my chest. Since it wasn’t in my left arm, I thought it was because of acidity. So, I drank water. But the pain was still there, so I told my trainer that we should cancel the training for the day. When Lizelle and I took the elevator to go up, I pressed the lift button and sat down. Once I stepped out of the lift I started coughing and I even wanted to throw up. Lizelle saw my smart watch, which checks on the heartbeat and ECG and the screen prompted ‘Are you not well?’ This pain was something that I had never experienced in my life. On reaching the hospital, we were told by the doctors that it’s a major heart attack.”

Remo says that the entire period was the scariest time of his life. “I am told that my right artery had a 100 per cent blockage. Usually, a normal human heart works at 55 per cent and when I was taken to the hospital, it was working only 25 per cent. Yeh mere saath kaise ho gaya? I keep a check on my body from time to time. It is probably hereditary, preworkout session or work stress. They are trying to figure it out and I am dying to know. A lot of people think I take steroids, which is not true at all. I believe in having a natural body,” he shares.

Talking about his diet and restrictions, the ace choreographer who is currently resting in his Goregaon home, explains, “Food is now restricted. For a month, I have to follow the no oil, no salt, no sweets diet.” 

Choreographer-director Remo D'Souza reveals he was in talks with Saroj Khan to bring her industry journey to the screen
Uma Ramasubramanian (MID-DAY; July 7, 2020)

With the passing of Saroj Khan, Bollywood lost a doyenne who had steered the Hindi film dance in a new direction and enriched it by weaving in elements of classical dance forms. While we have witnessed her magic on screen, little is known of the woman who — with grit and grace — carved her own identity in the male-dominated industry of the '70s and went on to reign supreme in her field.

Talking to mid-day, her daughter Sukaina Khan reveals that choreographer-director Remo D'Souza had approached the veteran for a biopic. "A few people were in talks with my mother to make her biopic. But, she used to dismiss the idea, saying, 'Mere baare mein kya jaanna hai logon ko?' However, during her last days, she had said Remo D'Souza was keen on telling her story. She thought Remo, being a dancer himself, would understand her journey, and hence, was the perfect person to helm the project," she says.

Having started out as a child actor, Khan served as an assistant choreographer to B Sohanlal before developing her unique style as a dance director. She dominated Bollywood through the '80s and '90s, collaborating with actor-muse Madhuri Dixit-Nene to give Hindi cinema some of its most spectacular songs. "The idea is to go beyond her choreography. I want people to know her journey as a fighter," adds Sukaina.

D'Souza reveals that he had broached the subject of a biopic while collaborating with Khan on her swansong, Tabah ho gaye (Kalank, 2019). "In response, she had said, 'You should make it.' I promised her that I would visit her to gather information about her childhood and early days. But, I didn't pursue it then as I was busy with my film."

With his Masterji gone, the Street Dancer 3D maker says he is keen to develop it as a tribute to her. "I should be the one making the film as she trusted me with it. I will take the discussion ahead with her daughter."