Mumbai, Nov 18 (IANS): Actress Karuna Pandey, who is currently a contestant in the celebrity dance reality show ‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’, performed breath-taking ‘Fire Kathak’ on the iconic track ‘Silsila Ye Chaahat Ka’, and shared how it was a ‘reliving old memories’ moment for her.

This weekend, the celebrities will attempt to try something new for the first time and step into uncharted dance territory with the ‘Pehli Baar’ challenge, wherein they’ll be scored for the first time by the trio of judges - Farah Khan, Arshad Warsi and Malaika Arora.

Karuna left the judges in awe of her performance to the song ‘Silsila Ye Chaahat Ka’, alongside choreographer Vivek Chachere. Her flawless footwork, graceful moves, and the mesmerising swirls of fire breathed life into her performance.

The song is sung by Shreya Ghoshal, and is from the 2002 period romantic drama film ‘Devdas’, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit in the lead roles.

Fire Kathak, a dance form that blends traditional Kathak with a contemporary twist involving elements of fire for the first time on Indian Television, left everyone awestruck.

Impressed by Karuna's dedication to pushing boundaries, Malaika said: “Karuna and Vivek, I have truly never seen anything like this on stage before. You played with fire, whether it was from your shoulders or hands or the four times you showed it in different styles. From different places, fire was emanating beautifully.”

“The section you did on the beat of the payal was stunning. I'm just wowed by the entire act; it was so enjoyable. You have captured all the gestures of Kathak beautifully. You are here to stay, and you are truly emerging as a top-notch dancer,” she added.

The act was visually so appealing that Farah said: “Last time, I said Pushpa, yeh flower nahi fire hai, and you took it very seriously. I mean, my heart was so happy, Vivek. What you presented was so beautiful; I love you. One thing that I want to tell you is that Vivek, your student Karuna, has danced better than you. That's an achievement – that someone you taught danced better than you.”

Thrilled by the positive feedback about her hard work and dedication, Karuna shared: “This is the first time I’m doing this. I learnt a little Kathak for a short period of time as a child, and it has been almost 18-20 years, after which I have tried Kathak again. It was good reliving some old memories with this act.”

‘Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa’ airs on Sony.