As a child, Purab Kohli was known for his dancing skills and was inspired by Madonna and Michael Jackson. He talks to Divya Kaushik about his love for Tango
In his early teens, he performed at dance shows across Mumbai and was so famous that certain performers would only want him as a child artiste dancing along with them. later he also joined Shiamak Dawar’s dance institute to learn the basics and participated in more stage shows. His affair with dance continued and he took part in a show choreographed by Roomy Roy Kapur, “a brilliant dancer and mother of actor Aditya Roy Kapur.” So it isn’t that Purab Kohli has just put on his dancing shoes as one of the contestant of reality show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa. The VJ-turned-actor says that dance was one of the things he was fond of in his childhood but for the last 20 years he hasn’t “moved” his body. “As a child I went to Australia for a holiday and brought along few videos of Madonna and Michael Jackson shows. I loved the dance moves and the fact that they could make so many people swing along with them. I started practising their dance steps and I had a cousin who started dancing along with me. Both of us copied MJ and tried to beat each other. This is how dancing happened to me. Then through a family friend I got a chance to perform at a hotel in Mud Island, more shows followed and my cousin and me were quite a star at that age,” he chuckled. He added that dance has been an integral part of the family but no one has been trained professionally.
His decision to participate in the show was not an easy one. “They approached me last year as well but it was at the last moment and I had a reason to say no. Moreover, I stayed away from reality shows because there were so many of them and I thought they exposed people way too much. But this time I was offered the show again, I had time to think and since it was dance, I thought let’s give it a try. But now when I have to rehearse for over seven hours a day, I am repenting my decision. My body is not fragile and I am building my stamina to put up a great show,” said Purab. He added that another reason he wanted to participate in the show “is that dance is all about change. It starts with physical change to overall personality development. It is such a good way to destress.”
The actor is being trained by choreographer Mohina, who Purab says “moves like a rocket and is a perfectionist.” If there is one thing that he would like to acquire from her is her energy. Talking about his strength and weakness as a dancer, he said, “I can work very hard. I won’t stop until I get desired strength. Since this is a competition and there are dancers par excellence in the show, I am going to leave no stone to improve on my dancing skills. My weakness is my physical strength at present, but it can be worked upon,” he said and added that Tango has been his favourite form and he hopes to master the dance form.
There have been examples on the small screen of actors who after being part of few films have been only a regular at reality shows. Purab says that won’t be the case with him. “I am an actor first and will be an actor. I have a film lined up for release in October and as soon as the show gets over I will be busy with another one. So I am not sure if I will be taking up another reality show or not,” he ended.