“Actresses are better at pulling off item songs than male actors. They add gloss and glamour to the song, while heroes mainly add attitude,” says choreographer Ganesh Acharya, who after directing Katrina Kaif’s dance moves in the popular item number Chikni Chameli, has now choreographed an item number Chamia No. 1 with Sanjay Dutt for the upcoming movie Zila Ghaziabad.

After Aamir Khan in Delhi Belly, Ranbir Kapoor in Chillar Party and Salman in Tees Mar Khan, Sanjay Dutt joins the bandwagon of item number guys. With the growing number of item songs, are men’s item numbers proving as popular as those by actresses? Bollywood choreographers share the USP of men’s item songs.
“While choreographing, we only choreograph the song, but it is the artiste who makes all the difference. I always do challenging songs and know exactly what I have to bring out of an actor. In the song Chamia No. 1, I have tried to focus on Dutt’s rugged look. But it’s a fact that item songs are meant for heroines. They are the ones who pull them off better. They add sex appeal and oomph factor to the song. With actors, we can only focus on their manly style. It’s less of dance and more of attitude,” says Acharya.
Ganesh adds that in terms of choreography and looks, Chamia No. 1 is a mix of Salman Khan’s song in Dabangg and Ajay Devgn’s in Singham. “Like Dabangg and Singham, Sanjay is given the look of a cop. In men’s item songs, we try to give them a particular move that’s recurrent all through the song. While Salman did the muscle and trouser moves in Dabangg, Ajay’s hand action in Singham depicted aggression. In Chamia too, dressed in a khadi wardi, Sanjay does a fun dance move with his shirt.”
Choreographer Sandeep Soparkar, who did an item number in Shiney Ahuja starrer Ghost, says that a good dancer can only pull off an item number well. “Be it actors or actresses, the item number is to add extra punch to the film. Both have different standards and targets. Men’s item numbers are basically to attract women, so the actor has to really look hot and sexy. He should be a good dancer to carry out dance sequences in the right tempo,” he adds.
Agrees choreographer Saroj Khan, who also feels the actor should be fit and lean enough to be an item boy. “Even Akshay Kumar now has a belly. Actors should be fit enough for an item number. They should maintain a good physique in order to do the right moves. Personally, while choreographing a man’s item song, I want the actor to concentrate on the theme of the song rather than just focussing on showing attitude,” she says.