Jaaved Jaaferi on how Boogie Woogie broke dance's elite image in the 90s
Synopsis
Long before dance reality TV became a staple of Indian television, Jaaved Jaaferi, Naved Jaaferi, and Ravi Behl wrote a two-page concept that nobody in the industry had tried. On India's Best Dancer Season 5, Jaaved recalled how Boogie Woogie's auditions at Mahalakshmi Studio proved that the real power of Western dance lived not in elite drawing rooms, but in the suburbs of Nala Sopara, Ghatkopar, and Borivali East.
Key Takeaways
Jaaved Jaaferi appeared on India's Best Dancer Season 5 on Sony Entertainment Television to discuss the legacy of Boogie Woogie .
Ravi Behl revealed that Naved Jaaferi conceived the show on a two-page concept at a time when no dance reality show existed in India.
Jaaved Jaaferi noted that Western dance in the 1990s was perceived as an upper-class activity — a perception Boogie Woogie directly challenged.
Auditions at the famous Mahalakshmi Studio drew children from working-class suburbs including Nala Sopara , Ghatkopar , and Borivali East .
The trio's stated philosophy: 'We are not the stars, they are the stars — we are just providing a platform.'
Jaaved Jaaferi, veteran actor and dancer, appeared on the latest episode of India's Best Dancer Season 5 on Sony Entertainment Television, where he recalled how the landmark dance reality show Boogie Woogie in the 1990s dismantled the long-held perception that Western dance was an art form reserved exclusively for the upper class.
How Boogie Woogie Came to Be
The episode brought together Jaaved Jaaferi, Ravi Behl, and Naved Jaaferi to look back at the early 1990s, when the very concept of a dance reality show was entirely unheard of in India. Ravi Behl recounted the moment the idea was born: 'Ek din Naved ne kaha, ghar pe aaya, bola ki I have an idea and uss waqt kisi ne sunaa hi nahi tha yeh concept. Aur immediately, since we are all dancers I said that's a fantastic idea, toh bas, doh page pe concept likha khud hi' — loosely translated, Naved Jaaferi arrived at Behl's home with a two-page concept that no one in the industry had attempted before, and the trio moved on it immediately.
Breaking the Class Barrier in Dance
Jaaved Jaaferi described how Western dance in that era was widely perceived as the domain of elite, upper-class circles. What the auditions at the famous Mahalakshmi Studio revealed, however, was something far more democratic. In his words: 'Us waqt dance jo the, jo khaas taur pe voh Western dance hota tha, woh upper class ke log kiya karte the aisa mana jaata tha. Toh jab auditions hue the, famous Mahalakshmi Studio mein maine dekha ki bacche the Nala Sopara, Ghatkopar, Borivali East, yahan sab ke bacche the. Toh yeh joh power aur josh tha na, yahi woh Nala Sopara, Ghatkopar aur Borivali walo baccho'n mein tha.'
The children who turned up — from working-class suburbs like Nala Sopara, Ghatkopar, and Borivali East — brought an energy and passion that challenged every assumption the industry held about who dance belonged to.
The Philosophy Behind the Platform
Jaaved Jaaferi also articulated the guiding philosophy that shaped Boogie Woogie's ethos, one that placed the contestants, not the hosts, at the centre. 'Humare, hum sabki wahi uss waqt philosophy thi. Hum star nahi hain, woh star hain. Woh picture hain aur hum frame hain. Hum kuch nahi kar rahe hain, hum sirf ek manch de rahe hain,' he said — meaning the team saw themselves only as a platform, not as the attraction.
Legacy and the Present
Boogie Woogie is widely credited with triggering the evolution of the dance reality genre in India, a format that gained further momentum through the subsequent decades and continues today with shows like India's Best Dancer. The Season 5 episode served as a bridge between that pioneering era and the current generation of competitive dance television. India's Best Dancer Season 5 airs on Sony Entertainment Television.
Point of View
The show quietly demolished a gatekeeping myth. What Jaaved Jaaferi describes is less a nostalgia trip and more a reminder that India's entertainment industry has repeatedly democratised itself from below, not from above. The question India's Best Dancer Season 5 implicitly raises is whether today's slickly produced dance formats still carry that same access-first philosophy, or whether production values have quietly rebuilt the very walls Boogie Woogie tore down.
NationPress
9 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What did Jaaved Jaaferi reveal on India's Best Dancer Season 5?
Jaaved Jaaferi recalled on India's Best Dancer Season 5 how the 1990s dance show Boogie Woogie challenged the widespread belief that Western dance was an art form for the upper class. He described seeing children from Nala Sopara, Ghatkopar, and Borivali East bring extraordinary energy to auditions at Mahalakshmi Studio, proving the perception wrong.
How did Boogie Woogie originate?
According to Ravi Behl, Naved Jaaferi arrived at his home one day with a two-page concept for a dance reality show at a time when no such format existed in India. Since all three — Naved Jaaferi, Ravi Behl, and Jaaved Jaaferi — were dancers, they immediately backed the idea and developed it.
Why was Western dance considered an elite activity in the 1990s?
Jaaved Jaaferi explained that Western dance in that era was widely assumed to be practised only by upper-class individuals. Boogie Woogie's open auditions disrupted this assumption by attracting talented children from working-class suburbs across Mumbai.
What was the guiding philosophy of the Boogie Woogie team?
Jaaved Jaaferi stated that the team saw themselves only as a platform — 'We are not the stars, they are the stars. They are the picture and we are the frame.' The show was designed to spotlight contestants rather than its hosts.
Where can viewers watch India's Best Dancer Season 5?
India's Best Dancer Season 5 airs on Sony Entertainment Television.
