Shiamak Davar is an Indian choreographer, noted as one of the first to bring contemporary

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a majo ...

and western forms of dance to India.Shiamak Davar
''

The Times of India ''The Times of India'', also known by its abbreviation ''TOI'', is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by The Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, t ...

'', 10 December 2002 He is known as the guru of contemporary dance in India. He is responsible for modernizing India’s dance scene especially in the film and theatre industries. He is respected for his ever-evolving and very popular "Shiamak Style" of dance. He was the director of choreography for the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930 British Empire Game ...

, Melbourne and Commonwealth Games, Delhi. In 2011 he choreographed the dance sequences for the movie ''Mission Impossible 4''. Davar has choreographed Indian actors and celebrities for film and stage for events like the IIFA Awards and the Filmfare Awards.

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

actors Shahid Kapoor, Sushant Singh Rajput, Varun Dhawan, Ishaan Khattar were members of the Shiamak Davar Dance Company. Upcoming Indian actors Ruslaan Mumtaz, Shubh and child actor Darsheel Safary were also a part of the Shiamak Davar Dance Company. Davar won the 1997 National Film Award for Best Choreography for his work in the film '' Dil to Pagal Hai'', as well as the Lycra (R) MTV Style Awards 2007 for 'Most Stylish Song in a Film', for "Dhoom Again" in the Indian film '' Dhoom 2''. In July 2011, Davar received an honorary doctorate from

Middlesex University Middlesex University London (legally Middlesex University and abbreviated MDX) is a public research university in Hendon, northwest London, England. The name of the university is taken from its location within the historic county boundaries o ...

in recognition of his contribution to entertainment in India and throughout the world. Davar is a Gujarati-speaking

Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim con ...

. Currently, he is also on the

Board of Advisors An advisory board is a body that provides non-binding strategic advice to the management of a corporation, organization, or foundation. The informal nature of an advisory board gives greater flexibility in structure and management compared to th ...

of India's International Movement to Unite Nations (I.I.M.U.N.).

Choreographer

Davar began his career in choreography for Hindi cinema with the film '' Dil To Pagal Hai'', for which he won the president's National Award. Having changed the way dance was perceived in Indian films, Davar went on to choreograph for Hindi films such as '' Taal'', '' Kisna'', '' Bunty Aur Babli'', '' Dhoom 2'', '' I See You'', '' Taare Zameen Par'', '' Yuvvraaj'', '' Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'', '' Bhaag Milkha Bhaag'', '' No Means No (film)'' and '' Jagga Jasoos''. Shiamak has acted and choreographed in the movie '' Little Ziziou''. He released a hit

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

album, ''Shabop'', for which he composed and sang songs with other Indian artists such as Shankar Mahadevan, Hariharan and Shweta Pandit as well as songs mixed and assorted by DJ Aqeel. Shiamak has been the performance and entertainment designer for shows such as the Sahara Sangeet Awards, the Shiamak Davar China Tou', the Seventh Cairo International Song Festival,

IIFA Awards The International Indian Film Academy Awards, popularly known as IIFA, is an annual awards ceremony for Bollywood. Produced by Wizcraft International Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, the winners of the awards are decided by fans, who vote online for th ...

, Shiamak: The Spirit of Song and Dance South Africa, I Believe — A Shiamak Davar Spectacular and The Unforgettable World Tour. Shiamak has directed, designed and performed at global events like the

2006 Commonwealth Games closing ceremony The Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games was held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia on 26 March 2006. Performances Countdown The ceremony began with a countdown at the screen starting at 17, footage f ...

, the

2010 Commonwealth Games closing ceremony The closing ceremony of the 2010 Commonwealth Games was held at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, the main stadium of the event, in New Delhi, India. It began at 7:00 pm (IST) on 14 October 2010 and ended at 9:20 pm (IST). The ceremony in ...

, the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental and lobbying organisation based in Cologny, canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German engineer and economist Klaus Schwab. The foundation, ...

, Davos (2006) and entertained leaders including

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (Birth name, né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 ...

who said, "the world must see you".

Singer

Shiamak is known for his electrifying and high energy live performances. He has often cited

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

to be his hero

and John's influence on Shiamak is clearly discernible. As a recording artist, Shiamak made his debut with an English album Survive in 199

when pop music was still nascent in India. Indian pop He made his Hindi Pop debut with the album ''Mohabbat Karle'', which sold 1.2 million copies in India. The song 'Jane Kisne' was quite a rage, especially amongst teenage girls, and was nominated for several awards, but winning none, as most awards went to

Daler Mehndi Daler Singh (born 18 August 1967), better known as Daler Mehndi, is an Indian singer, songwriter, author, and record producer. He has helped to make Bhangra popular worldwide, as well as Indian pop music independent of Bollywood music. He is ...

's 'Ho Gayi Teri Balle Balle'. The title track "Mohabbat Karle" plagiarised its melody from

Angelique Kidjo Angelique or Angélique may refer to: * Angélique (given name), a French feminine name Arts and entertainment Music * Angélique (instrument), a string instrument of the lute family * ''Angélique'', a 1927 opéra bouffe by Jacques Ibert ...

's Adouma. He also has other musical works in Hindi - Dil Chahe and Shabop. His latest album Shabop featured songs with Shankar Mahadevan, Hariharan and Shweta Pandit. Shiamak has shared the stage with artists such as Sting,

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

and

Eddy Grant Edmond Montague Grant (born 5 March 1948) is a Guyanese-British singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, known for his genre-blending sound; his music has blended elements of pop, British rock, soul, funk, reggae, electronic music, Af ...

.He was the opening act for

for his 2011 India concerts. He also performed for Oprah in 2012 during her visit to India.

Charity

As a

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, he runs the VAF (Victory Arts Foundation) that teaches dance to underprivileged children and children with mental and physical disabilities to help them experience the pleasure of expression through "dance as therapy". .

References

External links

Shiamak Davar's Homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davar, Shiamak Indian film choreographers Indian choreographers Living people Parsi people from Mumbai Artists from Mumbai 1961 births Filmfare Awards winners 20th-century Indian dancers Dancers from Maharashtra Best Choreography National Film Award winners