The world is talking about Naatu Naatu from RRR and rightfully so. Earlier this week, the hugely popular track won the Oscar in the Best Original Song category, creating history. Naatu Naatu was also performed live at the 95th Academy Awards. The track was sung on stage by Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava with a group of dancers led by choreographer Lauren Gottlieb. The group recreated the song's iconic signature steps on stage to thunderous applause and cheers. Now, Lauren Gottlieb has spoken about the reaction she got from actors Jr NTR and Ram Charan – who feature in the original song – in the Oscars lobby. In an interaction with India Today, she said, “And directly after the performance, we were greeted by Ram Charan and Jr NTR in the Oscars lobby. They were going crazy for our performance.”
About their feedback, Lauren Gottlieb added, “I was still on this performance high, so it's a little blurry in my head. All I remember is continuously asking them if they enjoyed the performance and if it was up to the mark and made them proud. They said they couldn't be more proud of what we pulled off. That was all I cared about. I wanted to make sure the RRR team loved it."
Speaking of her interaction with other members of the RRR team, Lauren Gottlieb shared that she met with the song's original choreographer Prem Rakshith during rehearsals. The dancer considered it vital to have Prem's approval and ensure that the performance was in line with his vision. Prior to his arrival in the US, Napoleon and Tabitha D'umo, the stage directors, had received a video from the choreographer, which provided a detailed breakdown of all the dance steps, Lauren added, explaining that it was “so helpful to learn straight from the choreographer.”
She also said: “I got to work closely with singers Rahul Sipligunj and Kaala Bhairava as they were in our act.”
Actors Jr NTR and Ram Charan, who were present at the ceremony, could not perform the song live due to scheduling conflicts. Nevertheless, the performance by Rahul Sipligunj, Kaala Bhairava, and Lauren Gottlieb and her group received a standing ovation at the awards ceremony. The performance was introduced on stage by Deepika Padukone, in her maiden Oscar appearance.
RRR is a fictional story based on the lives of two Telugu freedom fighters, Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem, played by Ram Charan and Jr NTR respectively. The film also features Alia Bhatt and Ajay Devgn in pivotal roles.
Meanwhile, Lauren Gottlieb is known for her work as an actor in films such as Hannah Montana: The Movie and Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked. She made her Bollywood debut with ABCD: Any Body Can Dance.