The 1993 Abbas Mustan-directed crime thriller, Baazigar proved to be a turning point in the careers of Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol and Shilpa Shetty. The film became the fourth highest-grosser of the year after its release and cemented the lead cast’s name in the industry. While Baazigar remains one of the best films in SRK’s filmography, it also gave Kajol and Shilpa a breakthrough in the Hindi film industry. Recently, the film’s directors shared an unheard anecdote about the two lead actresses of their 30-year-old film.
During an interview with Radio Nasha Official, the director duo, Abbas-Mustan revealed that Kajol and Shilpa were mere 17-year-olds when they signed the film. Mustan recalled the death scene of Shilpa’s character, ‘Seema Chopra’ and shared that Kajol could not control her laughter when she saw Shilpa lying on the ground. Sharing that it must have been due to the actress’ young age, Mustan added:
“In one of the scenes, when Shilpa’s character is pushed and falls off the terrace and dies, Kajol is supposed to cry, and SRK consoles her and takes her back into the car. However, when she saw Shilpa lying on the ground, she couldn’t control her laughter. She was just 17, and I think she didn’t understand the scene.”
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As Mustan was finished revealing the incident, Abbas interrupted him and said that Kajol was not laughing due to her age but because Shilpa lay dead with her eyes wide open. He mentioned that Kajol had pointed out this to him back then and had said that she was unable to bring out emotions as Shilpa’s eyes were open.
However, the director duo then had to call the young actress and explain to her the importance of the scene. Abbas-Mustan narrated that they had to tell her to imagine her sister, Tanishaa, instead of Shilpa, and then they asked her how she would feel if her real sister lay in a pool of blood. Revealing how this did the job and how Kajol finished the shot in just one take. In their words:
“We called her and told her, ‘Imagine the dead girl lying on the ground is your younger sister, Tanishaa. What would you do if you saw your real sister in a pool of blood?’ She immediately started crying. She continued to sob even after sitting in the car. We did the shot in just one take, and whatever she did in the scene was natural.”
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Further in the interview, Abbas-Mustan talked about casting two fairly new faces, Kajol and Shilpa, in their film. They mentioned that they always wanted to cast girls like Kajol and Shilpa in Baazigar and said that the former never troubled the director-duo on the sets. Talking about how the lead actresses’ parents had to sign the film on their behalf, Mustan said:
“We wanted girls like Kajol and Shilpa for their respective roles. When we signed Kajol, Bekhudi had not been released. They were still shooting for it. When we saw her perform in the film, she looked like a child. She was very natural and didn’t trouble us on the sets. We wanted someone new, and Shilpa was the perfect fit for the role. Both these girls were 17 and minors, and their parents had to sign the film’s contract on their behalf.”
What is your take on Kajol's emotions in the crucial scene in Baazigar?
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