Shantanu Maheshwari

Maheshwari was born on 7 March 1991 in Kolkata, India. He attended St. Joseph's College, Kolkata. He moved to Mumbai for his higher studies where he attended H.R. College of Commerce and Economics and was a part of the Street Soul Dance Crew [SSDC] from his college. Maheshwari is versatile as a dancer but specializes mainly in Popping and (Liquid) Waving.

Maheshwari began his acting career with Dil Dosti Dance for Channel V. He rose to fame by essaying the role of the lead character, Swayam Shekhawat during the four year run of the show. His chemistry with co-star Vrushika Mehta earned him widespread adulation as they went on to win the third spot as the Hottest Indian TV Jodi by the UK-based newspaper Eastern Eye. According to the reports, "The big surprise was Vrushika Mehta and Shantanu Maheshwari from teen serial 'Dil Dosti Dance', who saw off competition from established names to come third in the list." The pair also earned the Indian Television Academy Awards for Onscreen Couple of the Year in 2014.

Maheshwari appeared in Box Cricket League in 2013 and 2014 on Colors, as part of the team 'Chandigarh Cubs'. In 2015, he appeared in Zing (TV channel)'s episodics show Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya where he played the role of a cancer patient. He returned to the small screen with Dil Dosti Dance co-star Vrushika Mehta in an episodic of Bindass Yeh Hai Aashiqui, playing a verbally-challenged law student.He has also dubbed for some episodes of Yeh Hai Aashiqui. In the same year, he returned to Channel V with an episodic of Twistwala Love, playing the role of a dancer opposite Mohena Kumari Singh of Dance India Dance fame. Later that year, Maheshwari appeared in Bindass TV's Bindass Naach. The finite series, which had appearances by the likes of Jaja Vaňková and Terence Lewis (choreographer), showcased the formation of his crew Desi Hoppers and their subsequent victory at World of Dance 2015. Desi Hoppers became the first dance crew in the history to represent India at World of Dance and win it too. The crew was invited to give a special performance on America's Got Talent (season 11) and received praise from judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum and Nick Cannon. The crew was later invited to give a special performance on China's famous talk show Day Day Up.

In 2015, he appeared in a commercial for HP Pavilion (computer) for their #BendTheRules campaign which was directed by Shimit Amin (Director of award winning film ChakDe). In the same year, he starred in a music video under T-Series alongside Sunny Leone, by Kanika Kapoor and Mika Singh.

In 2016, he played Sahir Bhasin, an aspiring musician, in MTV India Girls on Top (2016 TV series). He was a part of first ever Bollywood theme park in Dubai which was opened in October 2016, where he voiced a character in the Ra.One ride based on superstar Shah Rukh Khan's film Ra.One. Apart from Ra.One, other Bollywood films which will be a part of the theme park includes "Sholay", "Mughal-E-Azam" and "Krrish", among others. He also appeared in a promotional dance video for Fashion at Big Bazaar alongside Terence Lewis (choreographer).

He participated in the celebrity dance reality show Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa on Colors. He was one of the most consistent performers in the show and became the most popular and strongest contender for the title. He received praise from seasoned actor Ronit Roy who called him a "winner and my star". Bollywood star Hrithik Roshan called Maheshwari a 'flying star'. He was the second runner up of the show.

In 2017, he starred in a short film Something Like Love which marked his foray into web-based cinema. He also launched the Spring Collection of Max Fashion in Mumbai. He then appeared in the first episode of MTV Big F Season 2 hosted by actor Randeep Hooda, playing the role of a dancer/choreographer. He was then seen in Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi Season 8 as a contestant which was shot in Spain and hosted by Bollywood director Rohit Shetty. He was the most consistent performer and was in the danger zone for the least number of times. Rohit Shetty called him the “silent killer”. Shantanu won the show by beating Hina Khan (actress) and Ravi Dubey in the finale. Along with his dance crew Desi Hoppers, Maheshwari was invited to perform an exhibition act at the World of Dance 2017 finals in Los Angeles.

The crew also went on to perform at Asian Battleground, a cross-national reality dance show shot in Malaysia.

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