‘Kites’ choreographer Sandip Soparrkar: Tiger Shroff is nearly as good a dancer as Hrithik Roshan however…’ – Firstpost

Choreographer and actor Sandip Soparrkar who turned 60 in 2024 and Kala Ghoda Arts Pageant 2025 appear to be a deadly combo. The context right here is GenS Life, a web-based group and platform devoted to empowering people aged 60+ by serving to them discover new alternatives, rediscover their passions, and rejoice life to its fullest.

GenS Life was part of the esteemed Kala Ghoda Arts Pageant 2025, showcasing an inspiring opening act on January thirtieth and 1st February, choreographed by Soparrkar.

In an unique interview with Firstost, Soparrkar spoke about the identical and much more.

Edited excerpts from the interview

What have been your expectations from the Kala Ghoda Arts Pageant 2025?

It has been one in every of my favorite festivals. I keep in mind means again in 2002 when the competition for the very first time launched Western dance on its platform. I used to be the one who had carried out the primary Western dance on that platform. So it’s all the time a really particular place for me, this competition. I’ve been performing there, and with completely different completely different themes, generally with Indian, generally Western generally mixture of the two, and right now, when it has reached 25 years, it has been a very long time for them.  

It’s Asia’s largest road artwork competition, and I feel with pleasure I can say that I’m part of it for the reason that very starting, and that’s what makes me really feel so particular about this competition.

What about your affiliation with GenS Life?

This began simply a few months again once I bought to listen to about it from one in every of my pricey pals, Bhawana Somaaya, who’s additionally a journalist. And he or she form of occurred to say to me that folks above 60 are becoming a member of this platform, and is supposed for folks above 60. So I went on to it to take a look as to what this platform was about, and I used to be tremendous impressed as a result of this platform didn’t suppose that above 60 means your life has come to a standstill, or they didn’t imagine that. You’ve got retired now since you’re 60, you have to sit at residence and do it. Believed that you just get this new new section for you in your life.

we’re speaking about annual sports activities medal certificates. So we live for our dad and mom, our household. Then, after 25 to about 50, 55, we live for to earn cash, to earn home, to get a you recognize, to get a automotive, get married, have kids, get them to highschool. All that’s occurring for us, which is a standard section of second life. Now the third section is that this section, the place your kids have gotten married, they’ve settled down. You aren’t recognized. Possibly your personal dad and mom have handed away. Now you’re not going to impress anyone, just one it’s important to now take care is of your personal self.

That is what GenS provides to their people who find themselves part of it. They’re giving them Yoga lessons. Dance lessons, journey reductions. There are reductions for well being advantages. There’s a lot of recommendation for them, as a result of these days the world has opened up due to Web, and possibly the older era are usually not that savvy with expertise, so make investments about funding, about well being, about finance, there’s a lot of data which may be given to them, and the precise data by the precise folks.

How does dance break stereotypes, particularly with regards to age?

In keeping with me, being a dancer for the previous 55, 60 years, I imagine that dance is part of everybody’s life. Dance is part of our tradition dance, part of our human human being. So all of us are dancing in a roundabout way or the opposite in our life. It’s simply that we don’t notice it’s the dance of life. And after age of 60, I imagine that every one the tensions of life, the traumas that we’ve got seen by way of there’s a lot that we undergo in life, Personally, professionally, financially, spiritually, socially, dance is the one meditation. I imagine it’s the final type of spirituality.

What do you are feeling may be folks’s takeaway who shall be attending the competition this 12 months?

, you’ll be shocked to know that that is the first time in 25 years that Kala Ghoda Pageant for the very 1st time is having a senior citizen dance occurring. So it’s, I feel, a breakthrough and a brand new achievement even for the Kalagara competition. So each time we’ve got seen children dance, we’ve got seen kids dance, and we’ve got had the previous folks, so-called previous folks sit in entrance of you and clap for you.

I feel now the tables have turned. Now it’s time that the kids stand and clap for the elder folks, as a result of let’s not neglect wherever we’ve got reached right now is due to them. That’s the reason you’re sitting the place you’re sitting right now due to your dad and mom, your grandparents’ help. So now I feel it’s time for them to help the older era.

You’ve got labored with Hrithik Roshan in Kites. Do you’ve got any anecdotes to share about your expertise how he’s as a dancer?

Oh, my God! I feel he’s among the finest dancers of trade. I’ve not solely achieved Kites for him, I’ve additionally achieved a few different motion pictures. I’ve achieved his HRX model launching. I’ve achieved the Britannia Advert for him and a few different works with him as effectively. You give him one motion, and he’ll take it up there. So, as a choreographer for us, it’s tremendous difficult to set something for him, as a result of we all know it can’t be easy. It can’t be straightforward. It has to have its personal benchmark and that benchmark, he’ll take it much more forward. So once I work with him the second time, I’ve to go above what I did the final time, so he even challenges me as a choreographer. He challenges everybody with him round him as a result of he’s so excellent with all the things that he does. Aside from his appears to be like and his physique, his dancing and appearing abilities, his dancing abilities are extraordinary.

There was a time when Hindi cinema had among the most iconic dancers, however I really feel in current instances there was a void. Do you’ve got any actor in thoughts who is an efficient dancer, and who can truly take the the legacy of dance forward?

I utterly agree with you that the dance dance numbers itself within the movies have diminished. There was a time when our movies would have 10-14 track and dance numbers. You take a look at Mughal-E-Azam . Take a look at all these older motion pictures that they had. They have been all truly musicals and so they had dances each jiffy, and the dance would take the story forward as effectively.

However by way of dance, I’d say Tiger Shroff has bought an entire lot of potential. He’s nearly as good as Hrithik Roshan and intensely hardworking, devoted. I’ve recognized him since he was a younger boy, as a result of Jackie Shroff is my pricey pal, and I feel he has very good potential to do much more as a result of he’s extraordinarily hardworking, or the laborious work.