Choreographer Jani on winning National Award: My dream was to create a song like ‘Vennelave Vennelave’

Dance Master Jani's phone has been buzzing with back-to-back calls since it was announced that he won the National Award for Best Choreography along with Sathish Krishnan for ‘Megam Karukkatha’ song from Thiruchitrambalam. On a phone call with Cinema Express, the dancer and choreographer seemed clearly exhausted, yet the excitement in his voice was also palpable.

Jani, who has won his first National Award, credits his success to multiple people who came together to create the dreamy song. “Firstly, I would like to thank cinematographer Om Prakash, he has sprinkled magic in the song. Dhanush has also added his inputs which greatly helped elevate the dance sequence. He is a fantastic actor, dancer, and singer, but he is also a talented technician,” says Jani. Heaping further praise on Dhanush, he adds, “He is not someone who learns the steps and dances to the tune. He injects his character into his moves. Also, he doesn't force his opinions, but only shares his thoughts.”

More than any song, ‘Megam Karukkatha’ holds a special place in Jani's heart, as it was borne out of his love for the song ‘Vennelave Vennelave’ from Prabhu Deva and Kajol's Minsara Kanavu. “My dream was to create such a song. Prabhu sir won the National Award for it. From that time, I had it in my mind that I should strive to work on a similar song,” he explains. “We ensured that this song should create waves among the audience. Even before the release, I had told the audience during an award function that a song in Dhanush’s vocals would become extremely popular,” he adds.

Jani also credits Anirudh’s composition and Dhanush’s vocals for its memorable tune. “From 'Arabic Kuthu', 'Chellamma' to 'Kaavaalaa', he had scored for many songs in which I was a choreographer. We have a great rapport and collaborate well together. Dhanush has a very charming voice that pulls any listener.” Along with Jani and Sathish Krishnan, actor Nithya Menen also won the Best Actress for her role in the film. “If Dhanush brings in a very different feel to his songs, Nithya matches up to his moves and expressions in her own unique style. She too is a great performer who does even the minutest of expressions extremely well,” he says, and adds, “Raashii Khanna is a figment of imagination in ‘Megam Karukkatha’ as Dhanush explains how he felt being in love. She is like lightning. And to give expressions for a character like that is very difficult, but she pulled it off effortlessly.”

Jani also points out that he was only focused on giving his best. “As much as I love recognition, my only thought was to put in my 100 per cent with all my passion. If I deserved the award, it would come to me. That was always on my mind.” While references to La La Land persist, Jani denies them and says, “It was merely a coincidence. We started the shoot and choreographed blindly. Even the poster design coincidentally was similar to it. Otherwise, we neither saw the film nor took any inspiration from it.”

Thanking every person who has worked alongside him on the song, Jani also credits the love of Indian people, especially Tamil and Telugu audiences. “This National Award is a result of all the love that audiences and cinema lovers have given to me. They made this song a hit by singing it and making reels out of it.”