Farah Khan once taught Shakira how to dance: Why the pop star asked for help from one of Bollywood's top choreographer in New York

Shakira, the Colombian singer-songwriter and dancer, is known for her fluid dance moves and global pop star appeal. But one of her most memorable performances of Hips Don’t Lie had a Bollywood twist to it. In 2006, she had turned to Indian choreographer-director Farah Khan to get help with some Bollywood-style dancing for the MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).

Farah had revealed this story during an appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show in 2022, where she joined actress Raveena Tandon as a guest. When the show's host Kapil Sharma asked about her experience of working with Shakira, the director-choreographer explained that she had been called to New York specifically for that performance.

“I was called to New York because she wanted to perform the song in Bollywood style. Thus, I went there and I choreographed ‘Hips Don’t Lie’ for her,” Farah said on the show.

Why Shakira wanted Bollywood-style choreography

Released in the year 2006, Shakira's Hips Don't Lie instantly became a hit and is till considered one of her best-known songs. For her performance at the MTV VMAs that year, she wanted to mix up Indian dance elements into the routine, that would bring a different style to the song's choreography.

According to what Farah said, the performance involved more than simply adding a few Indian steps. In a September 2006 interview with the BBC, she had explained that Shakira wanted semiclassical movements in her dance.

“We even did the famous Goddess Step with her standing in front, and all the dancers’ hands outstretched at the back,” Farah told the BBC while describing the routine. Shakira appeared in a pink traditional Indian outfit, and was accompanied by background dancers.

Shakira had only hours to learn

The preparation behind the performance was quite demanding too because Shakira had very little time to learn this new choreography.

Speaking to the BBC in 2006, Farah said the singer arrived in New York the night before the show after performing at a concert in Canada. The two then spent four hours rehearsing together.

“She came to New York the night before the final performance from her concert in Canada and rehearsed with me for four hours. After we left, she continued to practise for another hour at least,” Farah said.

This very short period for her preparation added pressure to the assignment. Farah also talked about the attention that people had on Shakira's performance and the expectations that came with choreographing a routine for such a big pop star.

“Shakira is one of the most fabulous dancers in the world now, and since the performance was highly talked about, there was tremendous pressure to do well,” she told the BBC.

Farah Khan's journey

This collaboration of Farah with Shakira was another notable chapter in Farah's long career in the entertainment industry, which began with choreography in Hindi cinema. She made her debut as a choreographer with the 1992 film Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar and has worked on more than 100 songs, creating dance routines and steps that have been popular among audiences.

She later moved into filmmaking, and made her directorial debut with Main Hoon Na in the year 2004. Her next films included Om Shanti Om and Happy New Year, all of which starred Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role.