Dance has increased my brand as an artiste: Nora Fatehi

By Simran Sethi

New Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) Nora Fatehi moved from Canada to India a few years ago to become an actress in Bollywood. She even managed to bag a few acting projects initially, including "Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans" and "Crazy Cukkad Family", but these were low-profile projects and she went unnoticed.

Then, her appearance on "Bigg Boss" and the dance numbers "Manohari" in "Baahubali: The Beginning" changed the tide. People started noticing Nora, and soon she was belting out the hit dance numbers, "Dilbar" ("Satyamev Jayate") and "O saki saki" ("Batla House").

The 27-year-old is currently in the spotlight as Bollywood's new dancing sensation, and she credits her "dance performances" for all the fame coming her way.

"I started my career as an actor but my acting skills did not get a lot of attention, and then I started doing whatever came my way. I got the opportunity to feature in hit songs, and I tried to showcase my dancing skills through them. Despite not being a trained dancer, I became a dancing sensation, which I would not have expected 10 years back. I just went with the flow. It was not planned.

"I am now where I am just because of my dance performances. People paid attention to me because of my dances. I feel my dance performances are helping in growing my brand as an artiste, as a lot of projects - including acting roles - are coming my way. Doors have opened for me," Nora told IANS.

Acting will always be Nora's priority. Apart from flaunting her dance moves in "Batla House" recently, Nora got a chance to show her acting skills in a cameo role.

"My focus has always been acting ever since I came India. Unfortunately, I did not start off well but now makers are approaching me with good roles and I am also trying to challenge myself, and put my best into everything. In the beginning, I had a problem speaking fluent Hindi but with time I have tried to improve myself. I really wanted to show people that I can act in Hindi, and I feel in 'Batla House' I have proved it," she added.

Nora also appears with actor Vicky Kaushal in the music video of Arijit Singh's new non-film single, "Pachtaoge". In the song, too, Nora showcases her acting skills as well as dance moves. According to her, "Pachtaoge" has given her a chance to prove her versatility.

"The song is very different from what I have been doing so far. It taught me how to enact different emotions along with dance," she concluded.

(Simran Sethi can be contacted at simran.s@ians.in)