On Friday, Sana Khaan took to social media to announce that she’s quitting showbiz “to serve humanity and follow the orders of my Creator”. She informed that she did not wish to be contacted for any work related to the entertainment industry. Zaira Wasim had taken a similar decision last year, and, as with her, Sana’s decision comes as a surprise to friends and colleagues.

The actress, who had been a part of the industry since 2005, had featured in films like Jai Ho and Wajah Tum Ho, along with several South films. She’d become very popular after the sixth season of Bigg Boss in 2012, emerging as the second runner up. Rajev Paul, who continued to be friends with her even after the reality show ended, admitted that, like Mirror, he’d been trying to reach her since he’d found out. “I’ve spoken to her mother; her family is standing behind her. Sana’s a sensible girl so it couldn’t have been an overnight decision. I hope she is happy,” asserted the actor, who had spoken to her last just before the Coronavirus lockdown.

Sana, in her statement, said that she’d been pondering existential issues like whether our purpose of coming into the world was to chase wealth and fame, and what happens after we die. She’d come to the realisation that this life is for betterment of life after death through social service. Actress-friend Ridhi Dogra who commended her on the ’gram, saying, “Be blessed today and every day,” also hadn’t spoken to or met Sana in a long time and was as surprised as the rest.

However, Vikram Bhatt, who acted alongside her in a series, Zindabaad, recalled her as someone who’d religiously offer namaaz five times a day. “She was doing charity work for some social institute so this sense of giving back is not new to her,” he reasoned, advising Sana to “never say never”.

Vishal Pandya, who directed her in Wajah Tum Ho, admits that they were in touch, off and on, even after the film, yet they had never discussed the subject of her quitting films. “It’s too personal, no one talks about such things till they are ready. She was always dedicated to her faith,” he shared.

Karan Tacker, who worked opposite her in a recent series, Special Ops, also remembered engaging in a long chat with her on Islamic culture and religion in general while driving to Petra in Jordan. “But she never hinted at the idea of quitting,” he shared.

Actor-choreographer Salman Yusuff Khan, who met Sana during Khatron Ke Khiladi and choreographed some of her Bigg Boss act, shared that she is very close to his wife and stated that the lockdown had given many a new, more humanitarian perspective which came with the realisation that materialistic things are useless. “Doing the right thing in the Islamic way is empowerment,” he maintained, adding that he was also wondering how to give back to society during these difficult times. “The satisfaction it brings is unmatched by any trophy. I fully support her decision and have sent her a message wishing her luck in this new phase.”

Sana was in the news earlier this year following her controversial break up with choreographer Melvin Louis. She had accused him of cheating on her and even shared screenshots of other girls telling her about a similar experience with him. However, now the former actress has deleted all her old Insta posts, including every one of her glamorous photographs and embraced the veil.

Mirror tried to get in touch with Sana but she chose not to answer our calls or text messages.

Asserting that Dhawan’s ability to comprehend musicality has enhanced with Street Dancer 3D, Salman Yusuff Khan says actor has upped the bar in this edition
Sonia Lulla (MID-DAY; January 16, 2020)

A decade after he bagged the winning title of Dance India Dance season one, and subsequently ventured into Bollywood, Salman Yusuff Khan admits that returning to the studio to train with 19- yearold dancers, is no mean feat.

“Currently, Urban [dance] is popular; it’s also what we have done in the film,” says Khan, one among a group of seasoned dancers breathing life into Varun Dhawan and Shraddha Kapoor-starrer Street Dancer 3D. “The choreography is tough, because [I] belonged to a different school of dance. It’s like a new language for the body,” says Khan, who, along with the rest of the troupe, commenced training for Remo D’Souza’s film a year ago.

If a dancer as seasoned as him can struggle to match the younger breed, one can only imagine the extent of effort that Dhawan and Kapoor would have needed to put in, to match, even outshine them. “Varun takes up challenges easily and is neither shy nor inhibited. If you observe his dance sequences [in the previous editions of the ABCD franchise], you’ll notice that he has always been either a second faster or slower than required. This time, he’s paid attention to the musicality and has reacted to it [accordingly]. He has now nabbed the timing. This change hasn’t happened overnight. He’s put in a lot of work.”

As is with every film that puts its cast through intense physical work, Street Dancer 3D too required a nutritionist and sports medicine practitioner aboard, at all time. “[We were on] a zero-carb diet. Since we needed carbs to sustain the kind of work we were putting in, we would often have muscle cramps. We had a nutritionist on board, as well as a sports therapy expert. Regardless of whether or not we were injured, we’d have sports massages, once a week to prevent injuries. [Even then] each dancer would suffer from some issue, either [a] back ache, a knee [injury], or a [ torn ligament].”

Varun Dhawan takes time off Street Dancer 3D's rehearsals to discuss the toil required for him to match professional dancers
Sonia Lulla (MID-DAY; January 8, 2020)

A ketogenic diet prevents one from consuming carbohydrate-rich foods — think about a meal plan that eliminates rice, wheat, breads, and sugar. Intermediate fasting is an eating pattern that requires one to avoid eating for 16 hours straight, permitting food consumption only in the remaining eight-hour window. Individually, both the dietary methods demand a fair amount of mental dedication from an individual willing to give them a try. Imagine our surprise then when Varun Dhawan tells us he's following both, simultaneously.

"But they eat everything, ya! Even rice," he complains childishly, referring to the 20-odd dancers — including Dharmesh Yelande and Salman Yusuff Khan — rehearsing for Street Dancer 3D in a studio, a few feet from us. We've pulled Dhawan out from his practice to ask him how he blends in with dancers who've been practising the art for years. "Since I am not a professional dancer, training with those who are is certainly difficult. While training for our last film, ABCD 2, Shraddha [Kapoor, co-star] and I were given a little extra hand-holding. But, for this film, from day one, we were not given [additional attention]. We were told to rehearse with the team, so that the speed at which we pick up steps improves. Given that we're doing street hip-hop, and new school, the movements are fast [paced]. So learning them fast is [crucial]."

During the shoot schedule that concluded weeks before this interaction, Dhawan says he would couple his dance training and shooting stints with a workout. "There's enough cardiovascular [work] happening through dance, so in the gym, I'd train with weights for 60 to 90 minutes. I've increased the amount of physical training I'm doing, and have specifically started targetting my quadriceps. People who dance need a lot of strength in the leg muscles, so doing that is important," says the actor, who features alongside revered dance groups from across the globe in the third edition of Remo D'Souza's franchise. "Rahul Shetty has choreographed the 10 songs in the film, and groups like [V] Unbeatable and Wild Ripperz [are being featured]. There are troupes from the UK, US, and Germany. I have to say, India's right there among the dancers. We are leading the revolution."

For several months leading up to this meeting in July 2019, Dhawan had been clocking in seven hours a day at dance rehearsals, waking up to messages in the dance troupe's WhatsApp group as they'd decide the day's schedule. "Living this active lifestyle, I feel like I've become five years younger. I'm 32, so doing this is not easy. But, I also have a lot of energy which finds an outlet through a film like this one."

As excited as he is for the new version of Bezubaan that will feature in this edition, Dhawan was also delighted to feature alongside Prabhudheva in Muqabla. So eager was he to share the space with him, that his energetic moves landed him with a tear in his hip flexor. While pulling off another high-octane stunt for the film in London, he also injured his hamstring. "I have to really push myself. Even with injuries, you still have to dance, and return to regular practice. These guys [other dancers] do it all the time. They're making me do a lot of stunts. They call me 'B-Boy Juhu'. I'm training with [calisthenics expert] Kuldeep Shashi [for it], and am doing things I'd never had thought I'd do. There's a stunt in which [I'm thrown] 20 feet in the air, and then they throw a [dancer] from down [towards me]. After Rahul made me do it, I learnt that the original stunt had been performed by a 10-year-old boy. I'm not. That makes a big difference. There's also a massive stunt coming up in the finale. Shraddha too has a lot of stunts."

Letty Mariam Abraham (MID-DAY; July 22, 2016)

The ninth season of Jhalak Dikhhla is set to go on air next weekend, and the contestant line- up includes some with two left feet. One participant, however, seems to have an edge — Salman Yusuff Khan, who has been a choreographer on the show in earlier editions. The decision to have him compete on the show has irked other contestants.

Actress Nora Fatehi, who is taking part in the dance reality show, said, “It’s not fair to us that Salman is suddenly a contestant. He is a gazillion steps ahead of us and understands the game. There have been seasons of Jhalak where trained dancers like Lauren Gottlieb participated, but this is different.”]

TV actor Arjun Bijlani chose to play it safe by saying, “He is part of JDJ now, so I cannot comment. In fact, he will be able to raise the bar and others will strive to match his level.”

Karishma Tanna shared similar sentiments. “We cannot judge what’s fair and what’s unfair. Salman is a good performer. He has been brought on the show so that we can get inspired by him.”

A few other contestants see it as an unfair move by the production house, but did not wish to come on record. When we contacted Salman for a comment, he said, “A lot of contestants have told me it’s not fair. But the production team has got me back on board, which means the audience wants to see me. They could have picked any choreographer from my batch. I used to be the guy who choreographed celebs with huge fan following. Have I ever said that’s not fair?"

Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 25, 2016)

The musical marks his choreographer-assistant Stanley D'Costa's directorial debut
Natasha Coutinho (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 17, 2016) 



Mirror had earlier reported (June 8) that Remo D'souza is kick-starting prep on his yet-to-be-titled next, featuring Sooraj Pancholi and Ajay Devgn. Now, we hear the choreographer-director is also producing a musical which launches his choreographer-assistant, Stanley D'Costa as director and features dance reality show winners, Shakti Mohan and Salman Yusuff Khan, in the lead.

"It's a love story with ballroom dancing at its core. I had planned to make a film around the dance form during ABCD in 2012, it is a long-standing dream. We will go on the floors by the year-end. Some well-known international dancers will be flown in to be part of the film," Remo informed Mirror.

The 44-year-old dancer-filmmaker reveals that his leading lady who features alongside him on his dance-based reality show, Dance Plus, was an obvious choice for the film.

"I have seen Shakti grow from a contestant to a mentor on the show. I always believed that she was made for the big screen. I promised to cast her in one of my films when she won her first reality show. I'm fulfilling that promise now," he signs off. 

Hiren Kotwani (BOMBAY TIMES; February 8, 2016)

BOMBAY TIMES (March 22, 2015)

Entire set gutted and the unit of ABCD sequel shaken as their grand finale meets with a fiery end
Sanyukta Iyer (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 27, 2015)

Seema Sinha (BOMBAY TIMES; January 10, 2015)

Subhash K Jha (DNA; May 28, 2014)

Dancer-choreographer Salman Yusuff Khan who made a substantial impact in his Remo D’Souza’s dance film ABCD - Any Body Can Dance won’t be seen in the sequel.

No, he has not fallen out of the graces of choreographer-director Remo. Salman will not be seen in ABCD 2 because he is readying for his big launch as a leading man. Remo confirms, “Salman is going to be launched as a hero in a film to be produced by me. It’s a dance-action film to be directed by Shakir Ali Khan.”

Salman is busy preparing for the big launch. He was recently seen in the reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi but now he has been instructed by Remo not to appear in any more reality shows on television. Salman is excited about his impending launch as a leading man, “Yes, Remo Sir is launching me in his first production. I’m looking forward to doing some outstanding dance and action in the film.”