People may call it dancing around trees, but the fact remains that it is these song and dance routines that have taken Bollywood films to the level where they are now; next only to Hollywood films.
It is mostly due to the dancers and great music that Indian films becames a craze in many diverse parts od the world. Raj Kapoor in Shri 420 and Mithun chakraborty in Disco Dancer sent the iron walled Russia into Uncontrolled touching story lines. Who can forgewt the sultry Helen dancing to "O Hassena zulfon waali" in the unforgettable Teesri MAnzil or Rishi Kapoor performing "Om Shanti Om" to adoring fans in Karz? That was truly the biirth of Bollywood dance we know today.
In India the most important component for a film to achieve tremendous sucess has traditionally been music and dance. Take "Aashiqui" for example - a Bollywood superhit only because of its music.
That Bollywood is full of talented and versatile choreograpghers is a well accepted fact, as over the years we have seen them apt to catch the latest global trends and incorporate them in thier films, often with spectacular effects and great sucess. Popular songs showcased actors' Cha-Cha-Cha talents like the popular "One Two Cha Cha Cha" sung by Usha Uthup and performed by Aruna Irani, or the Twist that was admirably performed in the memorable "Aao Twist Karein" in Bhooth Bangla by a young Mahmood.
The late Saroj Khan, famous for her Dhak Dhak choreography, has become a household name in the country, as has the next generation that inludes the like of FArah Khan, Shiamak Davar, Ganesh Acharya, Ganesh Hegd, remo D'souza and Prabhu Deva.
In recent years, we have witnesses several new choreograpghers who're often highly trained, and the dance routines in their movies have infused the songs with great verve and energy, so much so, that Hollywood movies at tiimes have followed suit. Case in point being the hugely sucessful "Chaiyya Chaiyya" in Mani Ratnam's Dil Se", that was played in "Inside Man".
The industry has over the years spawned legions of profeesional dancers, who come from all over the country to try their lick and earn some quick money. It's not incommon for foreigners to be seen on the sets of several films as part of the entourage shooting for songs as choreographers play the hard taskmaster.