Indian show renews interest in 1970s dance style from American gay clubs

A woman dances under the spotlight, the glittering tassels of her dress fluttering and swaying in tandem with her movements.

But it is her hands that catch the light; they flap, spin and whip through the air with breathtaking speed, almost like the blades of a fan.

These are the opening previews for a recently released web series on Amazon Prime Video called Waack Girls, a drama centered around six women who learn a new dance form to become their city's first all-female waacking team.

Few know about the dance, and so women have to fight hard – against society and their families – to be taken seriously. But waacking ends up being the gift that keeps on giving.

Directed by Sooni Taraporevala, the series has been released at a time when many Indian cities – big and small – are witnessing a renewed interest in waacking.

“I was fascinated by the dance style and the importance it gives to self-expression,” says Taraporewala of why she did the series.

Workshops and underground waacking jams – events where dancers battle their moves – are mushrooming in several cities, and international waacking legends are visiting the country to teach the dance.

Recently, Archie Burnett, who was a New York club dancer in the 1970s and 1980s and is a respected figure in the waacking community, visited India for a jam.

The dancers hope that the web series will give waacking more visibility in the country and show people that there is more to dancing than classical forms, hip-hop and Bollywood.

Waacking has a history steeped in the LGBTQ+ liberation movement and the freedom espoused by disco music.

The dance style emerged in the gay clubs of Los Angeles in the 1970s, when there was a lot of stigma surrounding homosexuality. Gay men used waacking to express themselves on the dance floor and to stand up to the hatred and discrimination they experienced.

Consequently, the dance style developed fast, sharp and forceful movements – similar to how comic book action heroes beat their villains, accompanied by sound effects such as “ka-pow” and “bam”.

“Waacking comes from the onomatopoeic word 'whack' and is reminiscent of (the effects) found in comic books,” says Tejaswi Patil, a Mumbai-based dancer who has been waacking for more than a decade.

The dance style also draws inspiration from the drama of Hollywood and its glamorous leading ladies. Dramatic poses, fast footwork and striking arm movements are characteristic of waacking, but dancers continue to add new movements to the repertoire of steps, as the celebration of individuality and self-expression is at the heart of the form.

And because of its core ethos, waacking continues to be a tool of empowerment and self-expression for the LGBTQ+ community in India.

“In fact, many people explore their sexual identity through the dance style because it allows a space for self-observation and expression,” says Ayushi Amrute, who has been waacking since 2012. and is a frequent host of Red Bull's Your House Is Waack – a waacking jam for dancers from around the country.

“Another important factor is that the waacking community always strives to be a safe space so that people feel comfortable expressing themselves,” she adds.

When Amrute was introduced to waacking by her dance teacher, the style was almost unknown in India. Her teacher encouraged her to watch videos and contact dancers abroad to learn more about the style.

“We (the handful of Indian dancers who started waking more than a decade ago) learned to dance the hard way; by doing our own research, learning about the history of the dance and contacting dancers in countries where walking was popular,” says Amrut.

Patil remembers learning waacking the same way. But today things are remarkably different. Over the past five years or so, the dance style has gained popularity, with more and more youngsters flocking to lessons to learn it.

Patil, who teaches dance, says she encourages her students to stay true to the spirit of the style — shameless self-expression.

When it comes to music, India is still finding its soundscape for the style, she adds. Songs by disco queen Donna Summer and American pop legend Diana Ross are still popular, as are songs from the 1983 film. Staying Alive.

Bollywood also had its own disco era, with songs like Koi Yahan Nache Nache and Aap Jaisa Koi becoming chart toppers in the 1980s, but they don't often find a place in today's rocking jams.

For Waack Girls, Taraporevala enlisted indie artists to create an album of original soundtracks, which Patil says has created a brand new and promising soundscape for waackers in India.

“I think the time is right for people to fully embrace who they are,” says Patil, “and waacking is the perfect platform to showcase what you find.”