Mahesh Bhatt famously gave Anupam Kher his first break in the movies with the 1984 film ‘Saaransh’. The actor and director got together recently for a chat to commemorate the 19th anniversary of their film.
During the conversation, the duo also looked back on the film ‘Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi‘, which starred Aamir Khan and Pooja Bhatt in the lead roles.Bhatt recalled an incident on the sets of ‘Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi’, where Aamir offered his (negative) feedback about Kher’s acting, which the filmmaker ultimately ignored.
Kher shared that he remembered the incident because the topic of conviction had just come up. While recalling the incident, the veteran star said that when he came for the rehearsal on the first day, he was looking like Chunky Panday’s father, who was a very well-known doctor. His reference point was that this character is the world’s first dad who encourages his daughter to bail on her own wedding.
When Aamir Khan did his first scene with him, Bhatt took over; also in Hindi, “he told him that Anupam was giving a very loud performance. And he felt that since a co-actor had brought this up, he should mention it to Anupam. He took me aside, and Bhatt mimed the self-assured gesture that Kher had made to him, reassuring him that he was sure of what tone to take in the performance. And that was more than enough for the filmmaker.
Meanwhile, Bhatt and Aamir had a famous falling out; their differences were rumoured to have started because Aamir felt that the filmmaker wasn’t fully committed to his work.
Bhatt had his own perspective on the falling-out, and he explained in an old interview on the Wild Films India channel, “He worked with me on Ghulam. That wasn’t a pleasant experience for me. When a man is burdened by his greatness, that burden is shared by people around him. Economically, that is very difficult, especially if you’re making movies with reasonable budgets. You can strive for excellence, but not perfection. Perfection is an illness. Excellence can be achieved through hard work.”
During the conversation, the duo also looked back on the film ‘Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi‘, which starred Aamir Khan and Pooja Bhatt in the lead roles.Bhatt recalled an incident on the sets of ‘Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi’, where Aamir offered his (negative) feedback about Kher’s acting, which the filmmaker ultimately ignored.
Kher shared that he remembered the incident because the topic of conviction had just come up. While recalling the incident, the veteran star said that when he came for the rehearsal on the first day, he was looking like Chunky Panday’s father, who was a very well-known doctor. His reference point was that this character is the world’s first dad who encourages his daughter to bail on her own wedding.
When Aamir Khan did his first scene with him, Bhatt took over; also in Hindi, “he told him that Anupam was giving a very loud performance. And he felt that since a co-actor had brought this up, he should mention it to Anupam. He took me aside, and Bhatt mimed the self-assured gesture that Kher had made to him, reassuring him that he was sure of what tone to take in the performance. And that was more than enough for the filmmaker.
Meanwhile, Bhatt and Aamir had a famous falling out; their differences were rumoured to have started because Aamir felt that the filmmaker wasn’t fully committed to his work.
Bhatt had his own perspective on the falling-out, and he explained in an old interview on the Wild Films India channel, “He worked with me on Ghulam. That wasn’t a pleasant experience for me. When a man is burdened by his greatness, that burden is shared by people around him. Economically, that is very difficult, especially if you’re making movies with reasonable budgets. You can strive for excellence, but not perfection. Perfection is an illness. Excellence can be achieved through hard work.”
Mahesh Bhatt and Anupam Kher reminisce about ‘Saaransh’ success in candid conversation
