Music, dance sequences, action stunts are key parts in a commercial film but there has to be relatable content as well.
I have always added dance to my productions. When I was directing theatre, I added dance sequences where they didn't exist in the play. I think dance is the ultimate form of expression.
For an actor, one doesn't have to be a dancer. But because our Hindi movies have so many song and dance sequences, it is preferred if they are good dancers. It's always advantageous to know dance. But if you don't, it's okay.
I'd like to act in Punjabi films and do some great roles instead of just dance sequences.
The moment any film has song and dance sequences - where any time any character can start singing and dancing without any explanation - it can turn into a senseless film.
The kind of films I do and I've done don't have song and dance sequences.
I've done a lot of dance sequences because I like them; I like to animate dancing because it's fun and visual.
I saw the dance as a vision of ineffable power. A man could, with dignity and a towering majesty, dance. Not mince, cavort, do "fancy dancing" or "showoff" steps. No: Dance as Michelangelo's visions dance and as the music of Bach dances.
Since 'Shamshera' is set in a particular time, the dance sequences require me to have a very Indian, very classical body language, which is why I started taking kathak classes to learn the nuances and the grace.
I didn't start out my directorial career with a dance film, as I knew people thought a choreographer will easily make a dance film. And even with a non-dance film, I had delivered a successful film.
Everyone who shoots dance sequences does it in a different way. Everyone who shoots fight sequences does it in a different way.
The battle scenes in 'Gladiator' don't have the exultant lift of Hong Kong period-action pictures like the 'Once Upon a Time in China' series, where the fights have the eye-popping panache of dance sequences from a musical.
'ABCD' is an out-and-out dance film. I also dance in the film. I must say you would see better dancers than me in this film. It was very tough for me to match their steps.
Going as far back as 'Dexter's Lab,' we've always had these sequences with no dialogue. The interesting thing is those sequences got the biggest reactions.
'ABCD - AnyBody Can Dance' and 'ABCD 2' has succeeded not merely because of dance, but mainly because of its good script. Viewers have loved the story, and that's why my movies have done well at the box office.
The thing about animation is that it's a constantly changing process. They talk in terms of sequences - so there's like thirty different sequences in a movie and at anytime those were shifting or being taken out or being replaced.