Celebrating Golden Jubilee of Dancing Bliss

Niikhil Ballal & Juili Kulkarni

At the tender age of three, when children barely start to run, Vaishali Irani, daughter of Daran Behram Reporter, set the stage on fire with her eye pleasing dance moves. Her elder sister Madhumati was a famous and a well-trained dancer and it was she who introduced Vaishali to this beautiful world of dancing.

Vaishali elucidated, “I undertook formal training in Kathak and Bharatanatyam from Pandit Bhimraj and Guru Kalyan Raman Pillai respectively. I became an accomplished dancer at the start of my teenage. I was hardly 12-13 years old when I had my first tryst with the silver screen, thanks to Rajshree, former Hindi film actress and daughter of V Shantaram, who offered me my first work in a movie that was shot in Rajkamal Studio.”

She added, “I vividly remember the day when my mother and I went to V Shantaram’s office for the first time. As soon as my mother dug into her bag to take out my photographs, Shantaramji quickly said that his eyes are like camera. Your daughter is selected for my movie.”

“I signed the contract the very next day,” exclaimed Vaishali. There were 52 other girls who went through screen testing but to her delight she was the one who made it straight to the movie sets without any screen test. The title of the film was Boond Jo Ban Gaye Moti.

Later, Vaishali also learnt swimming which would add to her repertoire. To her surprise, S.D. Narang offered her Anmol Moti, a predominantly underwater movie, but due to her nuptial, Irani backed out and the movie was then presented to Babita. Similarly, she had to refuse Subodh Mukherjee and RK banner as well.

Vaishali starred in Ramraj Nahata’s Raaton Ka Raja and S.S. Vasan’s Teen Bahuraniyan. She was offered another two movies by Vasan’s Gemini Pictures but could not do the same due to her wedding.

Just before marriage, Vaishali featured in just one movie; Chowkidar. Vaishali stated, “Sohanlal Masterji and Shyam Ralhan came home one night and requested my mother if I could do one classical number in the movie. My mother tried to convince them that long ago I had decided to bid adieu to movies. But the dyad was hell-bent to cast me in that song. In respect to both these gentlemen I agreed.”

Apart from the films, Vaishali participated in various high profile programmes, one of which was the warfront show at Nathula Pass that was held in December 1968. “Sunil Dutt’s Ajanta Arts Cultural Troupe wanted me to perform there. It was bone chilling cold and I was asked to perform in the snow. Dutt asked me to wear an overcoat and perform. However Waheeda Rehman, a hardcore artist, ordered me to perform wearing just the dance costume and nothing else. I still remember that half an hour when I performed in that harsh cold. After the performance, my feet were numb but heart was happy. In the same show, Kishore Kumar was making his comeback however the weather got the better of him and he could not perform,” reminisced Vaishali.

Till date, she has done thousands of shows in India and abroad. With movies and many stage shows to her credit, Vaishali hung her boots as she tied the knot with her family friend Sarosh Irani, the owner of Prabhat Talkies in Thane, to unfurl a new beginning. Sitting at home was never an option, so Irani decided to take her passion to a new height.

Prior to starting her dance academy in 1972, Vaishali actively taught dance since 1970. By the gracious presence of Nargis, Gopi Krishnaji, Shakila, Kammo, Shammiji, and many other stars, the institute was inaugurated in Thane. Everyday Vaishali put in dollops of hardwork as she relentlessly worked from 9am to 9pm. From introducing crash courses in Kathak and Bharatnatyam to organizing Group Arangetram, she refurbished the classical dance form and attracted many to it. The reason for introducing a crash course in Kathak and Bharatnatyam was that she realized that the girls these days are racing against time and it is difficult for them to invest 7-8 years in learning these dance forms. That is why she brought about this welcome change of having a 3-4 year crash course. Another innovation that Irani introduced was that of having Group Arangetram. Typically, Arangetram is an expensive affair and is likely to burn a hole in one’s pocket. By having Group Arangetram, Vaishali applied the principle of economies of scale as the cost got divided among multiple artists and thus became reasonable to each of them. If Group Arangetram would not have been introduced I am afraid we would have lost such a wonderful talent and ofcourse many others who succumb to the financial pressures of performing an Arangetram,” expressed Irani. She added, “Two girls performed Arangetram almost free of cost as they were adjusted in a group. I must acknowledge the parents who allowed these girls to perform with their daughters.”

We can say that she carried the bounty of experience that she earned prior to 1970 was put to use in her own classes. As her dance academy matured, Vaishali started training students in Holy Cross Convent High School and St. John The Baptist High School.  She also opened a branch in Thane’s Vrindavan society.

Vaishali, who is blessed with two daughters Anaheeta, an LLB, and Namrata, who has pursued hotel management, are now handling the dance academy. Despite her busy schedule, the mother in Vaishali left no stone unturned in the upbringing of her daughters. Both the daughters are highly educated and have tasted the industry and corporate world. However, the duo gave up their prolific jobs and chose to water the plant of which the seeds were sown by their mother. Truly, the hand that rocks the cradle, rules the world.

Another feather to Vaishali’s hat is the charity shows she organizes since 2006. “When Nargisji was unwell, she expressed her need to have charity shows, the proceeds of which could go to cancer patients. Since the last 15 years, my team and I have been conducting charity shows as a tribute to Nargisji, one of the finest actors of all times,” averred Vaishali. At present, both the daughters of Vaishali under the able aegis of their mother are running these shows.

Vaishali Irani concluded, “Dance is my oxygen and I cannot live without it. Dance is not only an art but also a teacher, which teaches you many things. It develops your personality, gives you confidence and I can vouch for the fact that a good dancer always stands out among the crowd.”