Gaana Rajas LIVE: One week to go!

London-based Gaana dance troupe “Gaana Rajas” will be performing live for the Sky 1 Got To Dance Semi-finals next Sunday, March 3rd! The group’s initial audition went down well with the judging panel, with judge Aston (member of boyband JLS) saying he “loved every single minute” of their energetic performance.

Made up of a group of British Asian 20-somethings, the dancers aim to bring the Gaana/dappankoothu style of dance to mainstream audiences. The Gaana Rajas are one of 30 semi-finalists to have been shortlisted from a group of 160 dancers/dance groups, and have been working hard since they found out that they qualified.

“We are practising really hard, and doing ridiculous hours too,” said choreographer Jeya. “Most of the dancers are working full-time, a couple are in their final year of university, and one member is commuting all the way from Oxford [to London]! But we all know what is at stake, and are doing our best to do everyone who is supporting us proud.“

The dance group unfortunately struggled to get the appropriate clearance for the music used in their initial audition, and a different piece of music had to be synced before their audition could be aired on television. They took to their Facebook page to share their views on this, saying: “Getting Tamil music from South India cleared and licensed to broadcast on national television has been near impossible.” To avoid this unnecessary hassle for their next routine, Gaana Rajas have had their semi-final performance music composed and produced by UK-based Tamil producer, Vernon G Segaram.

Jeya kept his lips sealed when asked about what we can expect from Sunday’s performance, saying “The live semis are going to be brilliant…but you have to watch to find out more! We’re also working on our finals piece, which is so exciting!“

Tune in to Sky 1 on Sunday, March 3rd at 6pm to watch the Gaana Rajas performing live! Once they have performed, be sure to vote for them either by clicking here, by phone (number will be revealed during the show), or via the mobile app Zeebox. Remember, the voting lines are only open for 8 minutes after all the acts of the night have performed!

Check out the Gaana Rajas vlog below, with footage from their first audition in front of the panel of judges: