Mayuresh, son of an Air-force personnel was always keen and good at Gymnastics, plays, dance and theater. Air force jobs take you to different states and Madras was one of the stations that the family spend a few years. Mayuresh Wadkar and family moved to Mumbai later. However, the family faced financial struggles and with no support from the paternal side of the family, the family lived with relatives of his Mother. Even basic food and nourishment was a far cry.
At the tender age of 10 years when he was in grade V, he would choreograph on weekends and earn approximately 500-700 per month. Week days were school days so he would train on weekends. He also participated in dance competition in school. In the years to follow, Mayuresh did not let go of education he did correspondence education from Pune.
In time he worked and landed a junior artist role in a Bhojpuri film for a mere Rs. 300. Anything was welcome and he was in no position to bargain. He felt let down as he could not make a mark in the dancing profession, and on advice from a friend he learned editing and gave it a shot. He also learnt folk from Maya Jadhav.
Professional breakthrough
A popular song filmed on Salman Khan was in his kitty ( OO Jane Jana). A friend Sunny suggested that Mayuresh try dance as he had the capability and the moves for Bollywood dancing. Mayuresh was a regular at competitions since school days. Somehow, convincing parents on choosing a career in dance was difficult. The competition is immense and the guarantee of regular work income bleak.
He then joined Balaji in 2004 and lucky for him a godsend Bhupesh Saigal , an editor at Balaji helped him getting work on the editing platform. Along the way he worked as an artist, choreographer for Kunal Music CDs where the amount he was paid was just enough for travel and incidental expenses. Bhupesh Saigal guided him further on editing and some of his projects included ” Kyunki saas bhi kabhi bahu thi “, “Kahi to hoga…”, ” Qayamat “.
Turning Point in Life
Once Immamudin Siddiqui – casting director at Balaji, seeing Mayuresh dance he was impressed and introduced him to Terrence Lewis – a well known name in choreography world. Indeed a big leap for Mayuresh. He had to sign a contract for three years ( 2005-08) . Subsequently he was noticed and got shows as dancer,choreographer and judge.
It’s rightly said that there is always a good soul lurking around to help. For Mayuresh it was Raju a friend who helped him in the early stages of his career. Raju helped him with basic expenses when he was monetarily in the red. Raju also helped him change his fashion and style, as in showbiz the first impression makes a big impact.
Learning new forms of dance was always on his priority list. He met Rajesh Mudgi who is a Bharat Ratna , Gold medalist and was an ace aerial dancer too. Mayuresh took lessons from him in aerial dance and was sure he wanted to grow in level and improve his skills with professional guidance.
In the show biz world being seen is important and auditions are the key to striking gold. Mayuresh too gave auditions and landed in serials like Mayka and Adalat. He got noticed by Remo D’Souza during the MJ band performance and he was offered a movie ABCD : Any Body Can Dance as villain. Later on he got the film “Machine” directed by Abbas Mustan and another movie “Smile Please” were prestigious projects of which he was involved.
Mayuresh was contestant for Dance India Dance, celebrity contestant for Dare 2 Dance, special performer for DID season 2, celebrity performer for Dance ke Super Stars, Diwali Dilo Ki, All is well, Pavitra Rishta, Zee Marathi Award, Gr8 women award 2010, Zee Rishtey Award, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Lil Champ Finale, Raam Leela With Ajay Devgn and 1000 plus shows globally.
As a choreographer he did prestigious projects like Dance India Dance Little Master, Punjabi Movie “Bolo Tarara”, Serial ” Main Yahan Ghar Ghar Kheli”, Video Album for Disney “Camp Rock”, ” Maharashtra cha favourite koun 2013″, annual event for Lodha Group, ICICI bank, Import Export Bank of India and many workshops globally.
Learn to achieve higher goals
In 2008 post this association with Terence, he took up an acting course from Kranti Pratap Singh. This association gave him the chance to learn about camera angle, lenses change and technical as aspects from Advait. Technical knowledge helped Mayuresh get work for few more projects like managing a song work of superhit film – Goliyon ki Rasleela Ram-Leela‘s Ang laga de and many other. Mayuresh was a learner and seeker . His passion took him back to Terence to learn salsa hip-hop and contemporary. He became a better packaged professional with knowledge of dance, camera angle understanding choreography skills and editing know how.
Sharing & Caring
He expanded his team to include eight students rather than indulge in a higher lifestyle which would be only for his personal gain. Sharing is what he believes in and being the tool to change another’s life. He is building a team and conducting workshops regularly on dancing techniques and live music dance techniques. He has mentored and helped around 22 students reach a good position in modeling, acting and dancing. Spreading good work by way of his skills.
Hurdles that sometime pull you down gets you frustrated to the extent of giving up. Mayuresh Wadkar too went through that phase. However, good people were around to advise him. Like Kranti Pratap Singh, who quoted a very good analogy – If your glass is full, the more water you pour it will overflow and drain out. Hence it’s always good to go with an empty clear focused mind to learn new skills. That way there is enough space to absorb new learning.
Inspirations that keep the fire burning
Mayuresh is inspired by Choreographer Ganesh Acharya and Ganesh Hedge , actors like Madhuri Dixit, Jacqueline , Norah Fatehi and Dipika Padukone, Ajay Devgan, Hritik Roshan and Shahid Kapoor to name a few.
Message from the heart
Mayuresh’s message to all those who want to learn dance, aerial dancing and risk involved moves is to first equip with knowledge, understand techniques and keep training to be fit in mind and body. Giving up will be an easy way out, Mayuresh Wadkar feel one must have the courage to try multiple skills, work hard with dedication and honesty. Keep the belief in oneself always alive and the most difficult phases will pass. Sudha Chandran is a great example of courage who faced adversities.
Grab what’s on offer
Today, the world has become virtual. Mayuresh Wadkar feels that digital platforms should be tapped and one must try to get maximum positive exposure to showcase your work using these mediums. Stick to originality – it never goes out of fashion
Family first and last
Last but not the least – love your family and support them as your every success is from being one with family. Never ditch family for materialistic gains or popularity.
