Terence Lewis on why reality TV talent hunt matters in India

Choreographer Terence Lewis has been associated with dance reality shows for long. He agrees that there is a surfeit of talent-based shows on television, but he feels all of these are important because they provide platforms to aspiring artists in a hugely populated country like India. The former judge of "Dance India Dance" returns to the judge's chair for "India's Best Dancer". He feels the show comes at the right time. "A lot of people ask, 'why so many singing and dance shows?' Look at our country. We have a 1.3-billion population and we have an interest in the arts. Over the past 10 years, there has been a huge awareness ever since 'Dance India Dance' began, and the journey took off. It has created a revolution, and the next generation dancers are waiting for a platform like this," Terence told IANS. He joins Malaika Arora and choreographer Geeta Kapoor on the judging panel of the upcoming show. "I am super excited for our new show 'India's Best Dancer'. I am coming back (as a judge) with Geeta after a long time. Also, the show is actually going to focus on the millennial and it will not be a mixed bag show with groups, duets and trios. There is solo dancing only," he shared. "I feel the level of dancing in solo dancing is always high. When you are in a group, you can give 50 percent and still be fine because there are a whole lot of people dancing with you, so you can cheat a lot. You don't have to be a fine dancer to be a group dancer. The moment you are a solo dancer, the level of commitment to a performance and to hold the energy and the audience is a task and it has to be a very high level artiste. Therefore, it is called 'India's Best Dancer'," he added. The judges are looking for "ENT", which stands for "entertainment, newness and technique".