MAKING MOVES The choreography process starts with the song lyrics. I transform the words or phrases of Bollywood songs into physical move­ments – using an abhinaya, which is a facial expression that depicts a mood, and mudras, which are hand gestures. This culture of translating words into movements has its roots in Indian classical dance. The dance style for each Bollywood song is influenced by the type of music, and which part of India it comes from. For example, bhangra, which comes from Punjab, is a folk music that has become very popular. If the song is bhangra style, with lots of drums, I’ll use bhangra dance-inspired movements. For an international flavour, Bollywood also taps into Western forms, such as ballet, salsa and hip hop. First, I work out the signature step of the dance. This relates to the key word of the song and it should be a simple action that everyone – not just professional dancers – can do. Then I build it from there.

COLOUR OF MUSIC I’m very visual in my approach and I feel experiences as colours. When I close my eyes and listen to music, I see colours. There’s a certain sad song that makes me see light blue and silver. Wedding celebrations make me see red and gold, or bright orange and pink. Music that is inspiring connects me to the high frequency of violet. It’s as if the song is telling me which colours are in tune with the vibration of the music. Once I’ve identified the song’s colours, I incorporate them into the costumes. Costumes have to fit with the story, so, depending on where a couple meets and what they do, their clothes might be more Western or more traditional Indian. I’ll discuss my ideas with the tailor and we’ll visit the fabric market together, because I’m very particular about the shades I want. As well as the look, it’s essential that the costumes are easy for the dancers to move in – the cut and flexibility of the fabric is a very important technical element.

FLASH DANCE I love to run flash mobs that are free public Bollywood workshops. They take place outside, in public spaces, and have a spontaneous, impromptu feel. I’ve flash-mobbed in front of the Museum of Contemporary Art, in Chicago, on the beach in Tel Aviv and outside the opera house in Cairo. In Hong Kong and China, people are often a little shy. In Africa, people love the rhythms and join in easily. Recently, I held one outside the Sydney Opera House. A young Chinese couple was there having wedding photos taken. She was in her bridal gown and he in a tuxedo, but they joined in, which was wonderful.

GOOD VIBRATIONS My workshop takes stamina. Because it’s so much fun and there’s music playing, the body goes into a trance. People don’t notice the time flying by and then realise they have been dancing for three hours straight. Afterwards, they feel like they’ve had a proper cardio work­out. During the event, everyone merges into a pool of fun and creativity and togetherness. The celebratory atmosphere helps people to put aside their fear and self-consciousness. Everyone feels connected by the wave of joy and celebration. After the workshops I can feel a major difference in the vibration of the participants. Everyone is uplifted and open and happy. People smile and laugh together, and exchange hugs and photographs. The walls of individuality break down and the community comes together. People always come up to me afterwards and say, “Something just happened. I don’t know what!” That’s exactly what I’m aiming for.

Gilles Chuyen will run a Bollywood Dance Workshop at the Ovolo Southside Hotel, in Wong Chuk Hang, on Wednesday as part of the India by the Bay festival.