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| Bollywood World Tour show 1994 |
Contestant Florina Gogoi along with her choreographer, Tusshar Shetty gave an energetic performance on a medley of late Sridevi's popular remixed songs on the Indian reality show
Super Dancer 4 earlier this month.
Super Dancer – Chapter 4 paid tribute to the evergreen actresses of the Indian Film Industry with the Bollywood Queens Special episode.
Contestant Florina Gogoi, from Jorhat Assam, along with her choreographer, Tusshar Shetty did a fine tribute to Sridevi, replete with voiceovers and visuals of the late great actress and dancer.
Florina and Tushar did not copy or replicate the actress' movements or outfits, instead displayed their prowess with House and old-school Hip-Hop styles on songs such as Mama Mia, Naino Mein Sapna, Hawaa Hawaai, Tu Mujhe Qabool and Meri Bindiya.
Judges Geeta Kapur, Malaika Arora and Terence Lewis loved it - and applauded the guru-shishya duo for doing justice and paying a tribute to the screen goddess.
Geeta Kapur, who worked with Sridevi on stage shows in the early 90s, said, “Itni badi hasti hain na Sridevi ji, unke life ko itne chote se samay main, samman dena bohot hi mushkil kaam hai. [Sridevi was such a huge phenomenon who accomplished so much in her short life, its difficult to pay tribute to her] Because her body of work is so much… Aapne sahi kaha end main, wo chaand ki chandani banker hume roz touch karti hain. [You were right to say at the end, she was a luminscent being who continues to touch our lives daily].”
When asked by Florina, Geeta Kapur shared further anecdotes about how in the early days of her career as a dancer, she worked Sridevi on international stage shows in the early '90s.
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| Geeta Kapur with Sridevi - circa 1994 |
She said, “A long time ago, when I was really young and I used to be a dancer, I used to dance behind Sridevi during some shows. I used to stand in the wings and watch her make an entry. She used to be so calm, collected and composed before she went on stage. Nothing used to affect her, not even screams and cheers from the audience, and the moment she had to go on stage, she used to be
jaise ek tej aata hai... that aura, that personality… it used to be a star entry! It used to be so joyful to watch her. People talk about how she used to switch on and switch off when she was in front of or away from the camera, but see how her work has never switched off. She's still here, amongst us.”
Geeta also revealed how Sridevi had a sharp memory. Once after several years, when Janhvi Kapoor was being launched in Dhadak, Geeta was working with the actress' daughter, and Sridevi happened to be on set. She came up to the choreographer and said, “Hello Geeta, how are you?”
It just made Geeta’s day!
On this note, Geeta gives a word of advice to Florina. “As you grow up and you go through your life’s journey, never forget the people who have been associated with you. Because down the line, when you meet them and say ‘hello’ they will feel nice. Toh sab ko yaad rakhna... [remember everyone] okay.”
Malaika Arora who was also a Sridevi fan, got very emotional reminiscing about the late actress who was suddenly taken away.
