Search - The Bollywood Dance Workout with Hemalayaa on DVD

Really Fun!

Anna Hope | PA United States | 01/09/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I know it is a workout dvd, how can it be fun!? But really, Hemalyaa (and please dont ask me how to pronounce that name. I have no idea, sadly.) approaches the workout as playtime and makes the individual segments very enjoyable. The time just seems to fly by which is especially weird for an exercise dvd!

The dance "playtime" is exactly what you would expect to see in a Bollywood film. It combines hip-hop, basic belly dance, and just plain fun body movement to form a style that looks execptionally easy and fun- when Hemalyaa does it, not me. I probably look like a floundering chicken. But I dont care! I still had fun and it was a definite workout particulary in the upper thighs.

The choreography goes fast but is pretty well explained and they always redo all of the movements, so even when you feel like you have no idea what you are supposed to be doing the dancers will suddenly go back to moves that you have already mastered. Sometimes it is just fun to watch them dance for a minute- and I say that not just because I was slacking for that minute!"

Feed the chickens: It's fun!

Basbenee | USA | 02/03/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I had a lot of fun with this workout. It's challenging and time flies, and so does the sweat! It has its warm up and a number of segments -- some basic moves (for the workout) and then a couple routines, ending with some yoga-infused cooldowns, and a few minutes of floor work in between. The workouts are more challenging, and if you're not in the best of shape you may want to pace yourself: some of the moves involve a lot of knee bends and squatting deep down and there's hopping around (high impact, definitely), so if you don't have strong knees or have a lot of weight to carry, modify until you're stronger -- you'll still get a good workout -- especially with the dance steps and kicking your knees up high -- and Hemalayaa makes you use your arms a lot, which is good for total body. It's a lot of fun to dance around, the music is nice (you don't have to have voiceover while working out, either), the setting is beautiful, and Hemalayaa is cool, along with her 2 dancers (by the way, she emphasizes a lot of "sass" as part of the workout -- which some might find annoying). If you love bellydance or think the Bollywood numbers are a blast you should really enjoy this. Some of the moves are definitely different from what you see in other videos and DVDs (the names of some of the moves, such as "Feed the Chickens" are fun, too), in a good way. One word, besides the potential hard work on the knees, if you aren't familiar with a lot of these types of dance moves, a bellydance dvd or class might help a lot, since a lot of these steps are bellydance inspired, only with more oomph. It's great fun!"

A Fun and Different Workout

H. Savino | 02/14/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I am always looking for ways to make working out fun and this workout definitely does that. It is about 50 minutes long but you're having so much fun, you don't even notice it. It just feels like you're dancing in your living room with your girlfriends. I am not very familiar with Bollywood but I had no trouble following the moves. A couple of them were a bit tricky at first but Hemalayaa is always reassuring that you don't have to do exactly what they are doing, and I liked that feeling of freedom. If, after doing the workout a few times, you didn't feel like following their moves, it would be perfectly comfortable to just dance along with the music. I recommend this DVD to those who like different kinds of workouts, especially dance workouts. This will provide great variety and definitely keep you from getting bored. I have only one warning: you might want to make sure you can be alone to do this workout so you can really get into it and enjoy it without feeling self-conscious. But that all depends on you! I also recommend Elsa Leandro's World Dance Workout, which also has a Bollywood segment, along with other dance forms."

Corny, silly, repetitious, cute, dancing style for sleepover

Lena, LMT | Nassau, NY | 11/28/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I've tried Hemalayaa's older videos, her Yoga for Urban Living & Dosha Yoga & felt though she has good intentions, she didn't have enough body awareness to be teaching something that is focused on having that ability & cultivating it further. She was good that her videos overall would keep someone who doesn't work out regularly heart rate up. Since this is just dancing, I figured this might be her strength, but I was wrong.
The menu choices include: Intro, Play, Chapters, Bonus Performances, Music Options (music only, music w/narration), & other videos from Acacia.
The other videos clips are Hemalayaa's Yoga for young bodies for 1:30, Yoga Trance Dance :30, Duncan Wong: awakening level :30 (he's awesome), The Elaine Petrone Method 9:44 (has a lot of video testimonials)
The Bonus Performance was same music showing Hemalayaa w/two girls in slow motion fade in/out clips of them dancing for almost 3 min, then Hemalayaa alone for 3 min w/paused video, slow mo, double video effects, etc. to make the dancing look better then it is & you can't follow along with this either.
In the intro, Hemalayaa says is from Bangra, which is from Northern India dance (big, bold, sassy, & outrageous)& incorporates modern dance, hip-hop, even belly dancing.
The 2 backup dancers are Juju & Kimberly (who's also the stage director & consultant). In the credits, these dancers were dead last which is very unusual.
The chapters are:
Warming (6 min), Playtime Begins (7 min), Footwork (6 min), Now we're hot! (8 min), Ground Play (6 min), Playful Dance (5 min), Cook it now! (9 min)
The set is gorgeous, with colors & textures, the music is fun, but it's looped after a few seconds & gets annoying after a while wanting to hear the rest of the song.
One of the dancers didn't know when the next move was herself many times which is annoying & shows they didn't practice enough. The voice over cuing was ok, She didn't really break anything down, or really give any body movement instruction to help you understand how to move, but since easy moves, it isn't so bad. She just tells you to "get down, let go, get sassy, dance like no one's watching" throughout.
At the playful dance portion where she is alone, she narrates kinda a routine, but very repetitious. She has you do a goddess move where you move forward toward the tv pushing one hip out leading... then does a literal hip-hop running man (moving backwards) though she does it in a more simplified/corny style & alternate those. She said it's natural they go together & "the running man is RUNNING AWAY.. actually he's running fwd toward the goddess..." Which makes NO sense.
There were some good ones, but very few. I got bored with the repetition. You will get your heart rate up since she incorporates a lot of hopping... like hopping 3x in a row to one side, hop & wiggle your gluts, then the other many times or other moves like a pony from the 50s in an Indian style or other moves that have knee lifts.
The idea is there, but I still don't like Hemalayaa's style or think her ability to dance was good enough to be teaching. I found myself following the background dancer who knew the routine instead.
If you want a hybrid Indian dance that's corny, silly & helps you let go because it's easy & silly, this is for you.

You can see a preview at the distributer Acacia com"