Lights, camera, action… This might not be what you could possibly hear at the Bombay Film Institute near Ulsoor Lake. But you will hear trainer Aqueel Syed (35) cautioning, ‘An actor is just a puppet in the hands of a director. His only job is to come, emote and go back.’
He should know. Syed has trained the likes of Simran, Sanjay Dutt, Chandrachur Singh, Rajat Bedi and Aryan Vaid. That is not all. The institute has people from Shakur’s Dance Academy in Mumbai, which has trained the likes of Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor and Fardeen Khan.
And heading the Bangalore chapter is Preeti Tandon (33). “Overall, it’s headed by actor Mehmood’s younger brother Shaukat Ali and his wife Veena is the MD of the institute,” says Tandon. “But I am managing the show in Bangalore for them.”
But why Bangalore? “Everybody who wanted to make it big in acting and dancing was coming to Mumbai, so we thought why not go to them?” asks Tandon. “That would bring down their expenses considerably if you consider boarding, lodging and transport.”
But the fee is not for everybody. For Rs 30,000, you get trained in all departments (fight, make-up, directing, acting, dubbing, diction, personality development) for three months before you are left to do your thing. It’s over four hours a day for five days in a week.
Started in Bangalore on August 7 last year, the institute has already given two big breaks to its students. “One person who passed out of our institute has been signed for Arjun Sajnani’s next film and another for Upendra’s next,” says Tandon.
Participation has come from all. “We expect absolutely raw people,” says Tandon. “People have come from Kerala, Ooty and Mysore, too. We have students, working professionals; software engineers… some want to take it up as a career and some as a hobby. At the end of their training, they are given a video cassette made on them so that they can show it to the various directors and producers.”
Gender-wise, it’s still a man’s world. “We have a male population of 80 per cent,” says Tandon. “We tend to increase the percentage of women by giving them good jobs, because the film industry demands an equal percentage of males and females.”
Tandon has started dance classes at the Bangalore Club and intends to do it at all major schools in the city. “It will be Rs 2,000 for a month’s training of five days a week,” she says. “Our dance classes are a combination of jive, salsa, chacha and aerobics.”
Mumbai-based dance master Shakur Sheikh, who assisted Jay Borade (who choreographed the blockbuster Hum Aapke Hain Kaun) has sent his pupils to groom Bangaloreans. And Bollywood endorses him. Says Kareena Kapoor: “Shakur is one of the best in the film industry. His rhythm and movements are just wonderful.” The others who have endorsed him include Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar, Arbaaz Khan, Celina Jaitley and Aditi Govitrikar.
With films being made in less than 28 days, the industry demands trained people. And here is where acting schools come in. Syed has the last word: “Whenever you are acting, don’t plan, don’t think, because it’s not natural.”
And how does dance help acting? Says Syed: “It’s important to move with the rhythm. With dance, your body movement comes natural to you and you are more free with the expression on your face.”
(Published in City Reporter, 2003)