Armstrong Creek woman Kelsey Jenning’s ‘accidental’ path to dancing in Bollywood films

When a Geelong woman was scouted online for a Bollywood dancing job, she thought the gig was in Melbourne. She ended up in India.

Kelsey Jenning is a dancer from Geelong who was scouted to go to Bollywood online. Picture: Mark Wilson.

An Armstrong Creek woman who was scouted online by an agent has since gone on to dance in a string of Bollywood films.

Kelsey Jenning, 28, received an unsolicited Facebook message from a Bollywood agent about a dancing job.

She thought the gig was in Melbourne.

“The job ended up being in India,” she said.

“It was a very random way of being scouted, but that is normal in our industry.”

On Christmas Day 2018, Ms Jenning left her family and flew to India.

She danced in 12 films in about six months and also featured in commercials and TV shows.

Ms Jenning started dance when she was in her late teens.

After graduating from Sacred Heart College in Newtown, she took a gap year and then started full-time training at professional dance studios in Melbourne.

She had some experience in Bollywood dance before she headed to India.

Ms Jenning and other cast members starring in the films would receive messages mere hours before a shoot, or even in the middle of the night, about where their filming location would be the next day.

“They would tell us which plane we needed to catch or where our driver would meet us to take us to the shoot,” she said.

“There was one day where we were working for 36 hours straight.

“It was crazy … we went from a 12 hour shoot, then a flight, then another 12 hour shoot which went overtime.”

Kelsey Jenning is a dancer from Geelong who was scouted to go to Bollywood. Picture: Mark Wilson.

Ms Jenning said 12 hours shoots were normal in Bollywood and the choreography was typically taught about 10 minutes before they started filming the scenes.

“You would arrive, get your costume and get your hair and makeup done, then you be quickly taught the routine,” she said.

“It was quite humorous because you didn’t really know how things would go, but I loved that.”

Ms Jenning said living in India was completely different to Australia.

“You couldn’t get anymore opposite,” she said.

Ms Jenning continues to work in the dance and modelling industry across Melbourne.

Originally published as Armstrong Creek woman Kelsey Jenning’s ‘accidental’ path to dancing in Bollywood films