They’ve loved him on TV, watched him dance at events and followed his every move on social media. On Sunday, they got a chance to see him dance up close, interact with him and scream their lungs out every time he waved or blew air-kisses (in picture) at them. 

Kumartuli boy Shantanu Maheshwari — who went from just another struggler to TV sensation with his breakthrough show Dil Dostii Dance — was in Calcutta to promote his new show Bindass Naach. 

The Shantanu Show kicked off at 2pm at City Centre New Town on a cloudy Sunday afternoon. But more than two hours before that, fans from across the city — Howrah to Hatibagan — had started crowding the atrium of the Rajarhat mall, jostling for space and waiting impatiently to catch a glimpse of their heart-throb. 

They were rewarded a little after 2pm when Shantanu, dressed in all-black, waltzed on stage— close friends and Bindass Naach co-stars Nimit Kotian and Macedon D’mello for company. For about an hour, camera phones went click-click and ‘Tannuholics’ screamed themselves hoarse as the 24-year-old showed off his moves to popular Bollywood numbers. Gandi baat drew the maximum cheers. Reason? Shantanu performed solo to the number from the Shahid Kapoor-starrer R... Rajkumar. As the prince of hearts blew kisses and thanked the crowd, many fangirls burst into tears even as others surged forward in the hope of a selfie.

“I didn’t expect so many fans. It was an awesome and phatapati response. It was actually difficult to match the energy of the crowd.  People were crying! Every performer wants to experience this... I am so happy,” Shantanu later told t2. 
Bindass Naach — that showcases Shantanu’s rise and rise — is a 10-episode show that will air on Bindass starting August 16. 

For months, they had been flooding the t2 inbox for an opportunity to meet their favourite TV star. On Sunday, eight t2 readers got the chance to meet Shantanu Maheshwari at an exclusive meet-and-greet. Picked from hundreds on the basis of an online contest run on t2’s social media platforms, the lucky eight chatted with Shantanu and his pals Nimit and Macedon for 45 minutes at Swissotel. Their verdict at the end of Super Sunday? “Our best day... ever!”

Chandrani Banerjee, college student: “Wherever I go, Calcutta will remain my home”, is what you have always said. Now that you have been living in Mumbai for six years,  do you still feel the same about Calcutta?
Shantanu Maheshwari: Yes, I do. I miss roaming around in Calcutta because that is what I used to do here. Matlab abhi bahut kam time ke liye aata hoon main yahan so I can’t live the way I used to. 
I feel like thode din pehle hi main Calcutta ko chhod gaya tha. Isliye these guys were saying ke main guide ke tarah bolta rehta hoon whenever we all come to Calcutta!

Chandrani: I have seen videos from your events where the entire crowd chants your name. How do you feel then?
Shantanu: I feel nervous…
Macedon D’mello: Nervously confident!
Shantanu: Yeah, that’s right.
I feel happy. I know I am doing right. I feel like I’m connecting with them. It gives you that energy and it pushes you to do something more. 

Chandrani: The next one is for the three of you — Mumbai’s pav bhaji or Calcutta’s phuchka?
Shantanu: Be honest!
Macedon: See, my favourite Indian food is pav bhaji.
Shantanu: See actually, he hasn’t eaten Calcutta’s phuchka…
Macedon: Pav bhaji is a different thing and phuchka is chaat.
Shantanu: Both are chaat, okay!
Nimit Kotian: Shantanu once made me have phuchka in Calcutta and it was really nice... amazing.
Shantanu: Phuchka anyday... I hate Mumbai’s paani puri!

Shreyasi Bhattacharya, graduate: Shantanu, you love photography. If you have to click three places in Calcutta, what would they be?
Shantanu: Ganga ghat, Victoria Memorial and Howrah Bridge. Wait, can I take one more? Kumartuli! (Smiles)

Simran Shaw, college student: Who are the people you trust the most?
Shantanu: My family. When I mean family, I mean my extended family. Agar naam leta rahoonga toh bahut time lag jaayega…I didn’t get your name? 
Simran: Simran Shaw...
Shantanu: Simran… oh Simran… uh huh… (Smiles)

Jayati Doshi, college student: How was it shooting for Bindass Naach? Did you guys play any pranks on each other?
Shantanu: We can’t reveal the pranks because then you won’t be surprised while watching the show!
Nimit: Ek bahut hi badhiya wala prank hai on the show.

t2: Who’s the biggest prankster among the three of you?
The boys in unison: All of us.
Macedon: See, the thing about Shantanu is that in front of people he’s very quiet. But when it’s just the three of us or when he’s with his family,  he’s somebody else. Woh hota hai na... aag lagake chale jaate hain, he’s like that.
Shantanu: No, I am very innocent! (Laughs)

t2: You guys met while in college in Mumbai. How was Shantanu then?
Nimit: That time he was very shy, matlab kabhi kisi se baat hi nahin karta tha bas dancing mein jalwa dikhata tha. Par uske baad... chup!
Macedon: We all used to hang out lekin yeh kabhi bhi nahin aata tha for late nights. He would say: ‘Nahin yaar sona hai!’ Shantanu was always punctual for the rehearsals.  Bahut izzat se baat karta tha aur Mumbai mein we all say ‘tu’. We used to be amused. Aur woh kya tha? Bhayanak?  
Shantanu: Bhayankar!
Macedon: Haan, bhayankar! Woh dancers ka term hota hai ki if you dance really well then we say Bahut ganda naacha tu ne yaar matlab bahut hi achcha aur Shantanu ne bola ‘bhayankar’! (Laughs)
Nimit: Abhi bhi use karta hai shuddh Hindi words kabhi kabhi.

Jayati: Who inspires you? 
Shantanu: Umm... I would say 
Prabhu Deva when it comes to dance and in acting, Leonardo DiCaprio.
I have not seen Prabhu Deva’s movies, but a lot of his videos. I love his choreography... I loved Keeda (Action Jackson ). He made Ajay Devgn dance! 
The Great Gatsby and The Wolf of Wall Street are my favourite Leo films.

Prakriti Mondal, school student: If you get a chance to choreograph someone special, who would it be?
Shantanu: Jaja Vankova (choreographer of Bindass Naach) and Govinda sir. I love the way Govinda sir enjoys (his dance). The way he gives his energy back to the crowd. The way he is.

Anindya Mahata, MCA student: Shantanu, are you enjoying your run on Instagram since you are pretty shy?
Shantanu: Kuch paane ke liye kuch khona padta hai… I spend so much time in front of the camera, so I thought it’s time for me to interact more with you guys... so I joined social media. Abhi bhi beech beech mein hard hota hai par… 
Anindya: You need to be more active!
Shantanu: Yeah, I know. I try. 
Nimit: I remember one time he posted a picture where he had cropped out our faces! We were like: ‘What did you post?!’
Shantanu: I don’t know how that happened!
Macedon: We didn’t have heads at all in that picture, but we were tagged! (Laughs)
Nimit: Delete kar raha tha, but he couldn’t even find the delete option!

Chandrani: What advice would you give someone who wants to become an actor-dancer?
Shantanu: Choose one. But whatever you do give your 100 per cent. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. There was a time when I was concentrating completely on dance. And then there was a phase when I didn’t want to dance because sab ‘dancer, dancer’ bolte thhe! But my mom made sure ke dancing mere paas rahey. Phir acting, I got a chance, so I gave 100 per cent, as I believed in it. Jab main acting kar raha tha in D3 (Dil Dostii Dance) then I realised ke yaar dance nahin chhodna chahiye tha! My first preference is dance. But I like both!

Prakriti: What is the one thing that the world doesn’t know about you?
Shantanu: Ki main apne paer mein kabhi kabhi Yardley ka powder lagata hoon! (Laughs)

Debashish Naskar, college student: When will we see you in Bollywood?
Shantanu: Bollywood? Kya pata yaar, kaam jab milega, zaroor aaonga.
Debashish: You are such a good actor...
Shantanu: Logon ko nahin dikhta, yaar! (Laughs) Koshish kar rahaa hoon. Ho sakta hai toh, agar aap logon ki duaein ho toh. I’ll try my best to entertain you.

Shreyasi: What is the one thing about you that you want to change?
Shantanu: I’m a little short-tempered. I would like to make that long! 

Sweta Bhattacharya, school student: Who is your favourite sportsperson?
Shantanu: Sachin Tendulkar... Roger Federer. 
Sweta: What else do you watch?
Shantanu: Let’s promote kabaddi… kabaddi…kabaddi! (Laughs) At times I do watch badminton and cricket.

t2: When will you get married and what kind of a girl do you want?
Macedon: He’s getting married next year!
Shantanu: Kyun shaadi karwana hai, yaar? 
Macedon: Shahid Kapoor ke jaisa ho jayega achanak!
t2: Are you dating anyone?
Shantanu: I’m not dating anyone.

Anindya: Since you guys will be travelling to Los Angeles for the first time with Bindass Naach, what are you looking forward to?
Shantanu: International airline. Good seats, my passport, pehla thappa (laughs)!

t2: Finally, Shantanu, where do you see yourself in the next couple of years? 
Shantanu: Go with the flow. Be like water! 

Were you there at the Shantanu show? Tell t2@abp.in