Hooray for Bollywood!

So it's not every evening that you can spend with a woman called the "Indian Jane Fonda" and voted one of the "Top 50 Coolest Desis of 2004," so I had to test out a fitness class at my gym called Bollywood Dance.

How did I get myself into this one, you ask? Well, a few weeks ago I discovered that my good friend Domini had joined my gym, and that she really wanted to try out this class. Always up for something new, we tried to make it to this class for a few weeks running, much to no avail. Last night, however, we had no excuses, and so I got my first lesson in the art of seduction as they do it in Bollywood!

The teacher is Sarina Jain, inventor of Masala Bhangra fitness, which incorporates Indian dance and music into the American fitness scene. Yeah, we're talking more '80s Jane Fonda than say, her '70s Vietnam war protester incarnation, or her '90s wife of Ted Turner period. But anyway...the class I took was basically a not quite intro to Bollywood dancing. Not quite, because if you've never done it before, you may find yourself a little frustrated. Being the (very) white Western male that I am...well...I wasn't exactly a pro.

Domini, the resident Desi, was of course quite skilled in the dances, which occasionally made me feel worse, but also helped when I completely forgot what the next move. It's so hard to figure out when to "go shy" and when to "open up," you know.

Will I try it again? Sure, why not? It's actually a really good work out. If you want to find me, just look for the really sweaty white guy who sneers whenever she says things like "grab your skirt." More information? Check here.