If you grew up in the '90s in India, there are slim chances that you would have missed Boogie Woogie, one of the longest running dance competition shows on television, hosted by the popular trio, Javed Jaffrey, Naved Jafri, and Ravi Behl. And now, the exuberant Naved Jafri is testing waters in acting with director Sanjay Gupta's latest outing, The Miranda Brothers, a sports drama.
Talking to Indulge about his acting debut, Naved says, “When Sanjay asked me to play Coach Guerrera, a strict ex-Army personnel who has been assigned with the task of choosing players for the Goa Football League, I instantly gave my nod. He asked me to be myself but look a tad serious while essaying the character, as the coach is not an emotional guy. The atmosphere on the sets was quite amiable, and I had a lot of fun shooting.”
So, how did he celebrate his first ever shot in cinema? “I think I killed it. Because my shot was okay after the very first take. Sanjay said it was fantastic and, without further ado, started moving the camera. That's when I reminded him that this was my first ever shot for the big screen. Everyone on the set began clapping for me. Sanjay said that I should have started acting three decades ago. That said, I am open to playing any role as long as the character, film, and director are good.”
On that note, we ask Naved why he never took the plunge into acting earlier, and he says, “Well, I was the director, producer, and editor of Boogie Woogie, and it was a huge responsibility. If I had delegated the task to someone else, the show may not have had such a long run. Having said that, I was offered roles in films, but my hands were full with Boogie Woogie for at least five days a week.”
Naved says that he had even ventured into production before the dance show. “In fact, we had started a film called Dance Master in 1993, a musical action flick. But then the Mumbai blasts happened and the film got shelved. In fact, we had recorded two songs for the film as well. We then launched Boogie Woogie in 1996.”
Ask him about his take on dance reality shows today, and pat comes the reply. “I am happy with the way dance has evolved over the years. Children today are fantastic and have a fire in them. They watch on the internet and learn on their own.” When asked if he is still planning to bring out a spin-off of Boogie Woogie, he says, “We are planning that. Hopefully, you might see it next year. There are so many shows today; it really has to catch people's attention and stand out.”