Shiamak Davar says Varun Dhawan-Gigi Hadid sequence was pre-planned amid backlash: ‘It was her idea’

Varun Dhawan faced flak for planting a peck on Gigi Hadid's cheek without her consent after dancing with her at NMACC gala night. Choreographer Shiamak Davar, who directed the act, has said, it was "Gigi's idea".

Varun Dhawan and Gigi Hadid performed at NMACC gala night. (Photos: Gigi Hadid/ Instagram)

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Nita and Mukesh Ambani, along with their family, hosted a two-day-long celebratory event on the occasion of the inauguration of Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) in Mumbai last week. The event saw some of the biggest celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood attend the bash followed by a gala night. While Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan added the desi glam to the celebrations, Tom Holland, Zendaya, Gigi Hadid, Penélope Cruz and others were left marvelling at the Indian hospitality.

Inside videos of Shah Rukh Khan, Ranveer Singh and Varun Dhawan performing on ‘Jhoome Jo Pathaan’, and Alia Bhatt and Rashmika Mandanna dancing on RRR’s ‘Naatu Naatu’ on stage at the NMACC gala on Saturday night have surfaced online. One of the clips from the event had Varun swooping American model Gigi Hadid in his arms and twirling her. He gave her a peck on the cheeks as the dance ended. This video received a lot of criticism on Twitter where some netizens bashed Varun for kissing Gigi without her consent and calling the video “cringe”.

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Addressing the controversy, Bollywood choreographer Shiamak Davar, who directed all the performances, in an interview with Hindustan Times said that it was “Gigi’s idea” and that “she asked Varun to do so”.

Also read | Gigi Hadid visits Mumbai monuments minus security, Tom Holland and Zendaya leave India

When asked to throw light on what actually happened, Shiamak said, “It is not true. It is Gigi who told Varun [to do so].” The choreographer adds that he was amazed with the kind of response that moment received: “I couldn’t believe how much they (the audience present at the do) loved it. Mukesh (Ambani) had tears in his eyes and [his wife] Nita (Ambani) was wiping them.”

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Shiamak further shared that Varun had informed him that Gigi asked him to bring her up on stage. He said, “That’s why he picked her up. It was her idea and everything was pre-planned.”

Also read | 25 years of Dil To Pagal Hai: How the Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit, Karisma Kapoor starrer changed the way Bollywood danced

I guess today you woke up and decided to be woke. So lemme burst ur bubble and tell u it was planned for her to be on stage so find a new Twitter cause to vent about rather then going out and doing something about things . Good morning 🙏 https://t.co/9O7Hg43y0S

— VarunDhawan (@Varun_dvn) April 2, 2023

After facing flak on Twitter about the incident, Varun had tweeted clarifying that the act was pre-planned and Gigi was kept in loop. He had written, “I guess today you woke up and decided to be woke. So lemme burst ur bubble and tell u it was planned for her to be on stage so find a new Twitter cause to vent about rather then going out and doing something about things ..”

Gigi too had shared a video from the event where Varun is seen dancing with her and later planting a peck on her cheek. She also thanked Varun for “making my Bollywood dreams come tru (true).”

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