Shantanu Maheshwari recalls when he met Sanjay Leela Bhansali, says he told himself ‘Don’t say anything stupid’

Gangubai Kathiawadi actor Shantanu Maheshwari who portrays the role of Afsaan in Gangubai Kathiawadi in the film recently shared how he started his career and eventually landed up in a Sanjay Leela Bhansali film.
Shantanu shared that his passion for dance started at an early age and he even participated in the famous show Boogie Woogie at one point. “I come from a middle-class Marwari family where for ‘stability’ one pursues being a CA. However, I had always been passionate about dance. In fact, as a kid, I had even participated in Boogie-Woogie & Mini Superstar. Still, I never thought of taking it up professionally until I moved to Bombay for college,” he told Humans of Bombay.

Shantanu got his big break in Channel V’s Dil Dosti Dance where he used his acting and dance skills. In 2017, he participated in Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 8 and emerged as the winner.
“I was just 19, I used to shoot in the morning & do dance rehearsals at night. I followed the same schedule with my studies daily. My routine would take a toll on me at times, but I was living the dream, there was no time to complain. My mother was happier than me. She was a dancer, & seeing me in front of the camera was her dream. So, once I had made & saved enough money, I bought a car & gave the keys to Maa, she cried,” he added.

Shantanu made it to on an international stage when he and his dance crew Desi Hoppers won the World of Dance 2015 Championship in Los Angeles. In 2016, along with his crew Desi Hoppers he gave a special performance on America’s Got Talent (season 11).
He shared how he landed a role in a Bhansali film and said that the call came in 2019. , who was last seen in Nach Baliye 9, then shared how that one audition call from Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s office was everything he needed and got. He said, “And then one day, back in 2019, I got a call for an audition for a Sanjay Leela Bhansali film. I could not believe it. I still remember meeting Sanjay Sir for the first time, he observed my features for the camera while I continuously told myself, ‘Don’t say anything stupid!’ But this film has been a learning experience.”