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Madhuri Dixit with Pt Birju Maharaj | Picture: http://madhuridixit-nene.com/
While Madhuri Dixit's combination of dance and aerobics does get your heartbeat up, as a workout regime, it falls short, says Veenu Sandhu
The idea of dancing and exercising with Madhuri Dixit, once the reigning queen of Bollywood who continues to be a fit, flexible and an energetic dancer at 46, is tempting. Her online dance academy, www.dancewithmadhuri.com, offers this rare opportunity with dancercise. A blend of aerobics and dance moves, dancercise is a great form of cardiovascular exercise that helps burn fat. Registration is free and one can then jump straight into her online class — age and sex no bar.
The lesson, which lasts around 15 minutes, begins with Dixit guiding you through basic warm-up and stretching exercises: neck, shoulders, arms, chest, hips, thighs and legs. She demonstrates perfect squats, cautioning you not to let your knees go over your toes. So far, so good. But then just as you are warming up for the regime, in a flash Madhuri Dixit, the instructor, disappears. And in her place appears Madhuri Dixit, the Bollywood dancer.
Before you can understand what’s going on, she has broken into a dance on a number from one of her films — Aaj na chodunga tujhe from the 1990 film Dil opposite Aamir Khan. At this point, she stops guiding you and focuses on dancing. About four minutes later, she’s back to the aerobic march. And seconds later, she’s off dancing again, this time to the tune of Aaja nachle, a song from her comeback film by the same name. Here, she also brings in her popular step from the song Chane ke khet mein from Anjaam opposite Shah Rukh Khan. Steps from her super-hit number Ek do teen from Tezaab follow. And thus continues the 15-minute dancercise with Dixit.
Before you can understand what’s going on, she has broken into a dance on a number from one of her films — Aaj na chodunga tujhe from the 1990 film Dil opposite Aamir Khan. At this point, she stops guiding you and focuses on dancing. About four minutes later, she’s back to the aerobic march. And seconds later, she’s off dancing again, this time to the tune of Aaja nachle, a song from her comeback film by the same name. Here, she also brings in her popular step from the song Chane ke khet mein from Anjaam opposite Shah Rukh Khan. Steps from her super-hit number Ek do teen from Tezaab follow. And thus continues the 15-minute dancercise with Dixit.
By the end of it, Dixit does leave you breathless, no doubt. There is no denying that as a cardio, dancercise with Dixit works. But not once through the regime does she tell you what muscles and parts of the body are getting exercised. While some of her dance moves require you to skip and prance, she does not guide you how to do them right so that you don’t run the risk of injuring your back or knee. Unlike in aerobics, because there are fewer repetitions of the steps, the muscles also do not feel as exercised. It’s also impossible to picture a man trying to exercise to these very feminine, Madhuri Dixit-esque moves.
Dixit has attempted to create a kind of fitness routine by playing on nostalgia. It’s a blast from the past, pulling you into a time warp which she hasn’t yet emerged from. Videos of Dixit’s own fitness routine would have been far more helpful.
Compare this to another film star who is known to be super-fit and has been, for some time now, sharing her fitness secret with the world. A quick-fix 15-minute yoga regime by Shilpa Shetty scores way above Dixit’s dancercise. It’s professional with the focus being solely on the asanas and how they can help you, rather than on the star performing them. From the word go, Shetty, the movie star, takes the backseat and Shetty, the yoga practitioner, is what you see. She demonstrates, among other, asanas that strengthen the stomach muscles and stretch out the thoracic cavity and the abdomen, the dhanurasana (bow pose) which strengthens the back and releases lower back pain, the standing chakrasana, a good exercise for the spine, veerbhadrasana (warrior pose) for stronger arms and legs and better balance and concentration. Carefully demonstrated, each asana is accompanied with a voiceover that explains in very clear terms the dos, don’ts and benefits, and cautions against the common mistakes.
Also check out a simple 20-minute “walking cardio workout” by Hollywood actor and fitness guru Jane Fonda. Level 1 of this workout too is way ahead of what Dixit’s dancercise offers. Fonda’s easy-to-execute cardio regime not only boosts energy and increases circulation, works out the arms, legs, butt, chest, abs, and back, it also stimulates the mind, reduces stress and slows down the shrinkage of the front part of the brain where decision-making and problem-solving take place — the part where the Alzheimer’s disease begins. Fonda, through the regime, keeps explaining what each step means and which part of the body it benefits. Some of Dixit’s dance moves aren’t as simple as the adept dancer makes them appear. But while she fails to help you there, Fonda, even through the comparatively simpler regime, tells you what to do in case you cannot keep pace with some step: “Just come back to marching, but don’t stop,” she advises.
Dancercise is being sold as an alternative to aerobics which can be rather boring with its repetitive steps. But if Dixit wants to make hers a success, she will need to play the role of an instructor and guide better.
