Kings United Explained

Kings United India
Nationality:Indian
Years Active:2009–present
Notable Works:

The Kings is an Indian hip-hop dance group from Vasai, a city in Maharashtra. They won NBC'S World of Dance and came third at World Hip Hop Dance Championship. Emmy awards nominee Suresh Mukund, is the choreographer and director of the group.[1] [2]

Kings United

In 2015, they became the first Indian group to win a medal at the World Hip Hop Dance Championship held in San Diego, California.[3] They gained worldwide fame after they won Season 3 of NBC's World of Dance in 2019 in Los Angeles, California.[4]

History

In 2009, Suresh Mukund and Vernon Monterio formed a hip hop dance group by the name of 'Fictitious Dance Group' which participated in various Indian dance shows and competitions.

In 2009, the group won the popular dance show Boogie Woogie.[5] The group went on to win Entertainment Ke liye Kuch Bhi Karega in 2010[6] and later the same year they were ranked third in Season 2 of India's Got Talent.

Choosing to re-enter the competition the following year, the group changed its name to the SNV Group named after members Suresh Mukund and Vernon Monteiro and this time won Season 3 of India's Got Talent in 2011.[7]

In 2012, the SNV Group travelled to Las Vegas and entered the World Hip Hop Dance Championship[8] where they made it to the finals and finished in 8th place, a first for an Indian group.[9] [10] Their hardships in funding their trip and their remarkable achievement in the competition were documented in the 2015 Bollywood film ABCD 2 which was directed by choreographer Remo D'Souza and starred prominent actors like Varun Dhawan,[11] Prabhu Deva and Shraddha Kapoor in lead roles.[12] [13] Suresh is played by Varun Dhawan and Vernon is played by Sushant Pujari.

After the release of the film, Mukund and Vernon parted ways due to creative differences and the group split with Vernon starting his own dance crew called "V Company" who subsequently won Season-1 of Dance Plus. [14]

Mukund then founded "Kings United India" with some of his old team members and a few new additions.

2015: World Hip Hop Dance Championship

In 2015, Mukund made a last minute decision to put together a dance crew to re-enter the World Hip Hop Dance Championship in San Diego. Actor Varun Dhawan arranged for Pond's to partially fund the group and pitched in with his own money to help out. Kings United came in third and won the Bronze medal.[15]

2016: Dance Academy

On January 3, 2016, they opened their own dance academy, "Kings United: Kingdom Of Art" in Vasai, Mumbai.[16] [17] The academy was inaugurated by choreographer Remo D'Souza and actor Varun Dhawan.[18]

In 2017, Kings United competed in the Indian dance reality show Dance Champions aired on Star Plus.[19]

2019: World of Dance & Upcoming Projects

On May 6, 2019, Kings United won the American dance reality show World of Dance Season 3 with a perfect score of 100 in the grand finale, thus winning a prize money of US$1 million.[20] [21] In a recent interview with a YouTube channel, Mukund said that 80% of the winnings would be shared among the team members.[22] Mukund has been nominated for an Emmy Award in the Outstanding Choreography for Variety or Reality Program category for the Kings' performances.[23] [24]

The crew is planning a world tour and conducting international dance workshops. After their win, Mukund also mentioned that the Kings United would no longer participate in competitions.[16] [25] There have been reports of a possible show with Jennifer Lopez.[26]

Mukund and his team will be judging India's first online dance competition by imd1. The competition is called Dance Is Life - DIL2019.[27]

Achievements & Appearances

YearCompetitionsAwards
2009Boogie Woogie (Sony)Winners
2010Entertainment Ke Liye Kuch Bhi KaregaWinners
India's Got Talent 2Contestants
2011India's Got Talent 3Winner vs SNV
2012World Hip Hop Dance ChampionshipTop 8
2015World Hip Hop Dance ChampionshipBronze Medal
Biopic on Kings
2017Dance ChampionsUltimate 10
2019World Of Dance 3Winners
Emmy awards(Suresh Mukund) Nominated
Dance Is LifeOnline Judge
Dance Plus 5(Suresh) Captain and Guest
ValiyaperunnalChoreography
2021World Choreography Awards(Suresh Mukund) Wins
Dance Deewane (Season 3)Guests and special performance Independence Day Special

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Nalasopara dance group creates history, stands 3rd in World Hip Hop Championship. Fazal. Imran. August 11, 2015. DNA India.
  2. Web site: ABCD 2 in Real Life: Mumbai Team Wins at World Hip Hop Competition. August 19, 2015. The Quint.
  3. Web site: Nalasopara dance group creates history, stands 3rd in World Hip Hop Championship. Fazal. Imran. 2015-08-11. DNA India. en. 2019-08-28.
  4. Web site: Indian Bolly-hop dance crew The Kings win World of Dance reality show, take home Rs 6.9 crore prize. 2019-05-06. Hindustan Times. en. 2019-08-28.
  5. Web site: FICTITIOUS WIN S.I.E.S. BATTLE.
  6. Web site: Nalasopara Dancing. Mumbai Mirror.
  7. Web site: Suresh and Vernon Group wins India's Got Talent 3. 2011-10-01. Hindustan Times. en. 2019-08-28.
  8. Web site: These desi B-boys will make some noise. 2012-07-19. Mid-day. en. 2019-08-28.
  9. Web site: Mumbai boys at World Hip-hop Championship - Times of India. The Times of India.
  10. News: What happens in Vegas. Jaisingh. Shreshta. 2012-06-14. The Hindu. 2019-08-28. en-IN. 0971-751X.
  11. Web site: Varun Dhawan's character in ABCD2 based on the life of India's Got Talent winner Suresh Mukund - Times of India. The Times of India.
  12. ABCD 2: The dance group that inspired Varun Dhawan-Shraddha Kapoor's film. Suhani Singh . June 16, 2015 . India Today. en. 2019-08-28.
  13. ABCD 2 review: A true story turned into a humdrum affair. Suhani Singh . June 22, 2015 . India Today.
  14. Web site: Choreographer Vernon to organise a dance league championship - Times of India. The Times of India. en. 2019-08-28.
  15. Web site: How Kings United won Bronze at the World Hip Hop Championships. DailyO.
  16. Web site: How Kings United conquered the 'World of Dance'. The Week. en. 2019-08-28.
  17. Web site: GRAND OPENING - Kings United Kingdom of Art. allevents.in.
  18. Web site: Seven Facts About Kings United That Will Blow Your Mind. BylineDanceserve. 2019-02-21. Danceserve. en-US. 2019-08-28.
  19. Web site: 'Jiyo Re Baahubali' act on 'Dance Champion' is breaking the internet- Watch. 2017-11-14. Zee News. en. 2019-08-28.
  20. Web site: Suresh Mukund: The journey of Kings United has been full of struggles. 2019-05-12. The Indian Express. en-IN. 2019-08-28.
  21. Web site: Suresh Mukund on The Kings win at World of Dance: We wanted India to shine through our performances. 2019-05-08. The Indian Express. en-IN. 2019-08-28.
  22. Web site: Man Behind THE KINGS - Suresh Mukund - World Of Dance Champion 2019 - Exclusive Interview. www.youtube.com.
  23. Web site: Mumbai Choreographer Suresh Mukund Nominated For an Emmy -. 2019-07-19. Rolling Stone India. en-US. 2019-08-28.
  24. Web site: Hollywood Calling for Emmy-Nominated Choreographer Suresh Mukund. 2019-07-23. The Quint. en. 2019-08-28.
  25. News: Indian crew The Kings to stop competing after World of Dance win. India Today. en. 2019-08-28. Ist.
  26. News: Likely JLo tour, Emmys and finding homes: The Kings' dreams after 'World of Dance' win. Press Trust of India. 2019-05-08. Business Standard India. 2019-08-28.
  27. Web site: imd1 (I Am The 1), launches India's biggest dance competition on a digital platform, 'Dance Is Life, 2019' (DIL2019) in collaboration with the World of Dance winner 'Kings United'.. Indian Showbiz.