4 min readNew DelhiMay 13, 2026 12:29 PM IST Sonali Bendre may have looked completely at ease on screen, but the actor says dance numbers were the one part of filmmaking she dreaded the most. Despite starring in several memorable Bollywood songs through the ’90s and early 2000s, Sonali revealed that performing in them often left her anxious because she had never been formally trained as a dancer. Recalling those early years, she also shared how legendary choreographer Saroj Khan once refused to teach her during the making of English Babu Desi Mem. In a conversation with Variety India, Sonali Bendre admitted that song sequences were the most stressful part of filmmaking for her. “The nightmare situation in movies was the song. I can’t tell you what a nightmare that was. I’m not a trained dancer,” she said. The actor explained that she was more comfortable when songs naturally blended into the story, but choreography itself would leave her overwhelmed. “Most of my songs are more like stories rather than part of the narrative. And …