By Radhika Bhirani

Mumbai, Apr 24 (IANS): She always wanted to become a bureaucrat but ended up being the country's new dancing sensation. And now "Dance India Dance 2" winner Shakti Mohan says she will follow her heart and pursue her passion.

"I was always a topper in school and college and was determined to become an IAS (Indian Administrative Service) officer. But then 'Dance India Dance' came along. And now that I have won it, there's no looking back," she told IANS in an interview.

"My father was quite insistent that I take the civil services exam and kept saying that 'you can try till you're 30 years old'. But now I'm not heading there, I'm going to study dance," said Shakti, who has a masters degree in political science.

The 24-year-old, who was one among the thousands who came to audition for Zee TV's "Dance India Dance" almost six months ago, is trained in contemporary dance.

Before auditioning for the show, she had enrolled for a three-year diploma course in dance at the institute of choreographer Terrence Lewis, who was also her mentor on the reality show.

Shakti said she always wanted to go abroad to study dance, but couldn't do so as her "family isn't financially very sound".

She now hopes to fly abroad and polish her skills to become a choreographer and boost the popularity of contemporary dance in India.

"I will try and use whatever money I get here or in shows later to go abroad, especially London, and study dance seriously. Apart from contemporary dance, I also want to learn other forms of dancing such as Kathak and hip-hop," she said.

Bollywood too is on Shakti's agenda and she has already grabbed an offer to feature in a promotional video for choreographer-director Farah Khan's next movie "Tees Maar Khan".

"I don't know what offers I will receive in Bollywood in the years to come, but as of now I have one opportunity in hand. Who knows what I end up doing, but first and foremost is my love and passion for dance," she said.

Shakti has three sisters, two of whom are already in showbiz. While Neeti, a singer, was seen on "Music Ka Mahamuqabla", her other sister, Mukti, will soon be seen on STAR Plus' "Zara Nachke Dikha".

  
 Shakti Mohan Crowned 'Dance India Dance' Winner

Mumbai, April 24 (IANS) After several weeks of tough competition, Shakti Mohan was announced the winner of Zee TV's dance reality show "Dance India Dance" at the grand finale here Friday night.

Shakti who is from Terrence Lewis' team, "Terrence Ki Toli" won with 7, 34, 140 votes and beat other finalists including Punit Pathak, Dharmesh Yelande and Binny Sharma to claim the spot. While Dharmesh bagged the second position, Punit was third.

"The journey has been really awesome. It is all thanks to Terrence sir that I have come so far and got a chance to wear the sunehri takdeer ki topi (Golden hat). He is a mind blowing guru and I will be seeking advice from him regarding whatever I do in future. It just feels great - from being nobody to being somebody," Shakti told reporters.

She also added that though she is a pro in contemporary dancing, she hopes to master hip-hop and kathak to be a versatile dancer.

The 24-year-old, who received the award from Pt. Birju Maharaj, in addition to the trophy, won a contract worth Rs.50 lakh and a WagonR car.

The show was graced by actor Mithun Chakraborty, grand master of the show, and masters Geeta Kapoor, Terrence Lewis and Remo D'Souza, at the Andheri Sports Complex here.

Also present were choreographer-director Farah Khan, who has promised the winner a chance to feature in the promotional video of her forthcoming film "Tees Maar Khan", choreographer Sandip Soparrkar and actor Manoj Bajpai and director Prakash Jha, who were here with Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor to promote their upcoming movie "Rajneeti".

The channel will now launch its first junior version of "Dance India Dance" with Farah and Soparrkar as judges.