I am here to stay: Gayatri Patel

Gayatri Patel’s debut film Let’s Dance has opened to a good response across the country. An excited Gayatri spoke to us about her film and her journey so far.

She began at the tender age of seven when she was signed up for a local Indian dance competition in Alabama in the US and decided that she was going to win the trophy. She did win it that year, the next year and the year after that, until they stopped the competition. While in the US, Gayatri graduated from high school and went to university in Atlanta, Georgia. Here, she won the Miss India-Georgia title and later emerged the first runner-up at Miss India USA pageant. She says. “I have formal training in Kathak and currently I’m learning under Vijayshri Chaudhary who is Pandit Birju Maharaj’s student. My strongest training in is Kathak which I have utilized in my hip- hop and western dance forms. I have grown up learning jazz and ballet in America. I use my classical dance forms as a root to western dance forms.”
She tells us, “As dancing is central to me and my character in the movie, I consider this film a gift from God. I play the character of a dance teacher, who is simple yet determined about her goals. It’s the story of the teacher, who on her way to fame, motivates a group of underprivileged kids. My co-actors are Ajay Chaudhary and Aqib Afzaal and the film is produced by my father Dr Arvind Patel," she says.
Apart from Let’s Dance, Gayatri has two more movies on hand but the projects are yet to start. But for now, she has no qualms about making a place for herself in the industry. "I am concentrating on my work rather than the competition. I want to show the world that I am not just a novice and I am here to stay," she says.
Gayatri considers Vyjayantimala, Madhuri Dixit, Meenkshi Sheshadri, Waheeda Rehman as her dance icons because she feels they were not only brilliant dancers but also fantastic actors.
“I want to follow their path and want to be known not just for my dancing skills but also my acting capabilities. I am essentially an actress and also a dancer.” She concludes.