Bollywood aboard a Finnair flight to celebrate India’s Republic Day

Passengers aboard a Finnair flight from Helsinki to New Delhi were pleasantly surprised when the aircraft’ staff treated them with a Bollywood-style dance to celebrate India’s 63rd Republic Day.

A video showing the smiling Finnair staff treating passengers to the choreographed routine, has become a hit on YouTube, receiving more than half-a-million hits in just one day.

Helena Kaartinen, the flight attendant who came up with the idea, coordinated rehearsals and even enlisted the help of a former flight attendant friend in Mumbai, who is now a Bollywood teacher.

She uploaded videos of the team practizing and expert Manish Gawde corrected the choreography ahead of the performance.

Helena Kaartinen told the New York Times: “It was a good way to show respect.”

The flight attendant said she was keen to show Indian passengers that the airline did know something about their culture.

The performance took place on a flight on January 17 and was uploaded to Finnair’s YouTube channel on January 25 to mark India’s Republic Day on January 26.

So far, the video clip has received more than 1.7 million viewings.

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