Shobhaa De slams trolls mocking Ananya Panday’s dance in Chand Mera Dil: ‘Shouldn’t you call out director'

ANanya Panday has latterly suit the place of trolls after her Bharatanatyam nuclear fusion reaction trip the light fantastic sequence in Chand Mera Dil went viral. A section of social media users, including classical dancers, criticised her performance and dubbed it “Nepo Natyam”. While opinions on the matter remain divided, author and columnist Shobhaa De has now come to the actor’s defence. She urged trolls not to single out Ananya and instead question the filmmakers and choreographers responsible for the sequence.Shobhaa De defends AnanyaShobhaa sided with Ananya in a new Instagram video and said, "She's not a trained Bharatanatyam dancer, and if you have to call out anyone, shouldn't it be the choreographer and the director? Why target her?"She further added, "Not just her, I feel there's an incredible amount of pressure on our young stars and even the older stars, most of whom were not trained classical dancers but were expected to perform classical dances or fusion dances or modern dances - any kind of dance that the director thought was needed for a sequence. They did it, they lip-synced, they danced, they showed expressions. Is all that easy? It's not easy at all. How many Hollywood stars do you know? How many big international stars have to do all of this and look amazing and look fabulous and look in love for the film, for whatever the performance demands?"She also requested the audience to react only after watching the film and understanding the full context. "I haven't watched the film - I've seen clips - but to be constantly trolled and called 'Nepo Natyam', it sounds cute, but she has tried. And like I said, if you have to call out anyone, get the choreographer and get them to answer, though I believe the clip has been taken out of context. Well, you decide," she concluded. What is the controversy?In Chand Mera Dil, which also stars Ba***ds of Bollywood actor Lakshya, Ananya plays the role of Chandni, the daughter of a Bharatanatyam dancer. In one of the sequences, she is seen performing a fusion of Bharatanatyam-inspired choreography with modern hip-hop instead of a traditional recital. The performance impresses Lakshya’s character Aarav in the film.Amid the trolling barrage, Ananya’s father Chunky Panday also defended her. He told ETimes, "People assumed it was traditional Bharatanatyam and started judging it from that lens. But pure Bharatanatyam requires years and years of rigorous training. Almost 20 years of discipline and precision. It’s extremely technical and structured, almost robotic in its movements and expressions.”