How Nora Fatehi Became A Dancing Sensation In Bollywood  (2024)

Nora Fatehi is Bollywood's new favourite dancing sensation.The Moroccan-Canadian actor-dancer has been making inroads in the industry since 2015, having appeared in songs in a number of movies across film industries, including Rocky Handsome, Mr X and Baahubali: The Beginning, among others.

More recently she's been seen in popular item songs like Stree's Kamariya, Satymeva Jayate'sDilbar and O Saki Saki in Nikkhil Advani's Batla House. The videos of the three songs have collectively garnered more than a billion views on Youtube. Outside of dancing, Fatehi has also had small roles in films like Bharatand will soon be seen in Remo D'Souza's Street Dancer 3D starring Varun Dhawan and Shraddha Kapoor.

In a recent interview with Anupama Chopra, she spoke about her journey to Bollywood, the struggles of aspiring to be a professional performer in a conservative Arab family and the film industry's treatment of foreigners. Here are five things you may not know about her.

Edited Excerpts:

I Came To India To Become An Actor

Since childhood, my dream was that I act, play characters and do films, but I was not allowed to voice that. One time I said that I wanted to act, and my dad looked at me and said "don't ever say that again… If you want to do something in life, it better be a lawyer, doctor or teacher". In school I did a lot of drama classes, a lot of theatre, those extracurricular activities we had in school in Canada. But my family never knew. My dad thought I excelled as a student because I focussed on my studies, which I did. When I had come to India, it was to act and I just found myself dancing because they were the first opportunities that were coming. And I took them because in my head I'm like "I'm a performer, I'm an artist", so I should do everything.

If you watch me for four minutes in a song, you should feel inspired to go to a dance class or learn a new dance style. But it shouldn't be just "skin show, she's hot, move on"

I Did Many Jobs. I Was A Hustler

I reached a point in my life where I had a lot of responsibilities at home and I was taking care of my younger brother on my own. After my parents divorced, I ended up in a very weird situation where it was just me and my brother. I had to be the breadwinner of the family and take care of him. After graduating from high school, I devoted 3-4 years just to my brother, supporting him financially, working so many jobs. I was working as a telemarketing customer service representative, I was working in a restaurant as a waitress, a bartender, I used to make hookah at hookah cafes… I did everything. I was a hustler. I realised that four years went by and I am not pursuing my dream. I remember telling my brother and my friends that I am going to India to become an actress.

Foreigners Who Come To India For Work Often Get Cheated

I think my first opportunity was an ad that I did in the first month I came to the country. That was a huge ad, it was for Dove. In my eyes, I said to myself "Nora, you're a nobody here and you bagged something like this. That's huge". After that, I signed a film called Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans.I signed another film, which was Prakash Jha's film. There I was a supporting character and I worked with really great actors like Shilpa Shukla, Swanand Kirkire, Ninad Kamat. All these people are really great actors. I remember them telling me, "just be patient and push through. If you have determination and trust in yourself, it will happen". I think that just stuck in my head, despite the fact that I was going through a lot of rejection and a lot people did cheat me. Agencies are not easy to deal with in this country, especially for foreigners. When I say foreigners, I don't speak of just actors, I speak of make-up artists, hairdressers, stylists. Anybody who comes to pursue a career here in the entertainment field, they go through a lot with agencies. A lot of them steal their money, bully them. I have my make-up artist friends who have done so well in this country but have zero rupees in their bank account because the agencies refuse to give them their money, and they have to laws that protect that for them and they have no rights and nobody helps them.

I'm A Self-Taught Dancer

I have a knack for the arts. I like to dance, I like to act, and because I didn't have the resources to learn, I had to learn myself. I remember I used to lock myself in a room and YouTube all these performers that I really liked at that time. I really liked belly dance and it is something that is normal in my culture. Everyone belly dances. But I wanted to take it to another level. I started watching these professional dancers. There was one, in particular, her name is Didem, she is from Turkey. I used to watch, rewind, stop, rewind, look in the mirror, do a move. If it's not coming, try again the next day until that one move comes. And then it just went on from there to watching Beyonce videos all day, every day. I'm also a huge Madhuri Dixit fan so I used to watch all her songs.

I Don't See These As Item Songs. They Are Performance Oriented.

I don't see these as item songs. They are performance-oriented songs, and they're very tough. And I do that on purpose. Whenever I have a conversation with any choreographer that comes on board, I say "Sir, make the choreography difficult". I want the audience to enjoy watching, they should learn, they should feel inspired. If you watch me for four minutes in a song, you should feel inspired to go to a dance class or learn a new dance style. But it shouldn't be just "skin show, she's hot, move on"… With Saki Saki, I said let's make the choreography freestyle and let's make it very hard. I remember Nikkhil (Advani) sir told the choreographer, "This is not a hook step. No-one will pick it up". For some reason I believed that the audience doesn't want me to do easy things, they want to see me do difficult things because it's visually cool. Otherwise you can take anyone in an item song and they'll justify it. I want to have a purpose in this industry and leave a mark.

How Nora Fatehi Became A Dancing Sensation In Bollywood  (2024)

FAQs

How did Nora Fatehi become a dancer? ›

While audience is mesmerised by Nora's dance moves, Nora revealed in a recent chat , "I was never a dancer, I was self-taught." Her passion for dance manifested during her teenage years, where she practised with friends. Other than dance, Nora is also establishing herself in the music industry.

How did Nora get into Bollywood? ›

Nora Fatehi began her career with her debut appearance in the Hindi film Roar: Tigers of the Sundarbans. She played CJ, in her acting debut. She then ventured into Telugu films with item number, "Ittage Recchipodham", in Puri Jagannadh's film Temper.

What is the dance style of Nora Fatehi? ›

Nora is a trained belly dancer, which involves movements of hips and torso.

How much does Nora Fatehi charge for one dance? ›

Nora Fatehi reportedly charges a huge amount for a dance sequence in a film. She charges Rs 2 crore for a song, as per reports. Talking about her early life, after coming to India she used to live in a 3-bedroom house with 9 other people.

What dance does Nora perform? ›

All the tragedy of Nora's character is condensed in the tarantella scene, as the protagonist performs her macabre dance struggling for bare existence, and an identity she desperately tries to perpetuate.

What made Nora Fatehi famous? ›

Nora Fatehi is usually known for her glammed up avatars and dance numbers which set the screens on fire. In no time, the actress has made a mark for herself when it comes to her dancing skills and her popularity has reached sky high.

What is the Bollywood style of dance? ›

Initially influenced by traditional Indian dance styles including Kathak, Bharatanatyam, as well as folk dances like Bhangra and Garba, it gradually integrated elements from Western dance genres such as jazz, hip-hop, and contemporary dance.

What is the origin of Nora's dance? ›

Nora is a lively and acrobatic form of dance theatre and improvisational singing from southern Thailand.

Who is the most expensive item girl in India? ›

India's highest-paid item girl is...

But for her five-minute appearance in Pushpa The Rise's Oo Antava, south superstar Samantha Ruth Prabhu took home an astonishing fees of Rs 5 crore. This type of money has not been charged by any actress in Indian cinema, just for one song.

How does Nora Fatehi make money? ›

Fees for films and songs

She is earning a whopping amount from films and events. She has worked in various big-budget films to add more to her wealth. She charges around Rs 1 crore per movie while Rs 50 lakh for an item song. Nora's 15 to 20 per cent income comes from brand endorsem*nts too.

At what age Nora Fatehi started her career? ›

Career and Movies

Nora Fatehi's age was 22 years old when she made her debut. She then made her film debut in Telugu with the item song Ittage Recchipodham in Puri Jagannadh's Temper.

Does Nora Fatehi have a degree? ›

She has a Canadian citizenship. She completed her schooling from Westview Centennial Secondary School, Toronto. She was pursuing a degree from York University, Toronto, but dropped out. Nora Fatehi is unmarried.

How does Nora Fatehi earn money? ›

Fees for films and songs

She is earning a whopping amount from films and events. She has worked in various big-budget films to add more to her wealth. She charges around Rs 1 crore per movie while Rs 50 lakh for an item song. Nora's 15 to 20 per cent income comes from brand endorsem*nts too.

Who is the Moroccan dancer in Bollywood? ›

Nora Fatehi, the renowned Bollywood dancer and actress of Canadian-Moroccan descent, is making headlines with her candid revelations about her devout observance of fasting and prayer since the tender age of 14.

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