Dance India Dance winner Shakti Mohan with mentor choreographer Terrence Lewis. Picture by Sudeshna Banerjee

It’s heavy,” she winced, but the next moment the smile was back on her lips. Nothing would make Shakti Mohan let go of the golden crown she had earned after 18 weeks of sweat, certainly not its weight.

Girl power ruled at the second edition of Dance India Dance with Shakti Mohan, the lissome belle from Delhi, being crowned with the sunehri taqdeer ki topi. “So many of them clicked pictures with the topi on the sets, but not me. I had vowed not to touch it unless it was mine,” the 24-year-old smiled.

A consistent performer, she had already bagged the “khubsoorat performance of the season” trophy on the strength of her six dancer-of-the-day awards. But for the winner’s crown, her main competitor was the dance teacher from Baroda, Dharmesh ‘sir’ Yelande, though Punit Pathak and Binny Sharma had also made it to the finals.

On the final count, she bagged 7,34,140 votes, a few thousand more than Dharmesh at 7,30,931. The victory meant being crowned by Pandit Birju Maharaj, a booty of Rs 50 lakh, a brand new WagonR and a plasma TV. But the night had more surprises in store. Director-choreographer Farah Khan, a guest at the finals, announced that the winner would be featured in the promotional video of her under-production film Tees Maar Khan. Much later, Shakti was sharing her dream of training abroad with the media when her mentor Terrence Lewis took her aside. “I am going to Impulstanz, the Vienna International Dance Festival. You are coming with me. The best of teachers will be there,” said the contemporary dance specialist to the stunned student.

“Shakti had trained in my institute for three years before she came on the show. She is a devotee of dance. I would like to see her reach the international stage,” said Lewis.

She had started preparing for UPSC exams. But the Mohan daughters perhaps are meant for the entertainment world. The elder, Niti, was part of the Aasma girl band and was recently on Music ka Maha Muqabla, while another, Mukti, is a part of Zara Nachke Dikha, both on STAR Plus.

Now she cannot think beyond dance. “It is difficult for parents in India to accept that their daughter wants to be a dancer. I want to bring dignity to dance,” said the Madhuri Dixit fan.