Veteran actress Farida Jalal recently opened up about her experience working with the legendary Gulzar on the 1975 film Khushboo. Known for its unconventional casting of Jeetendra and Hema Malini, the film was different from their usual glamour roles. Farida revealed on The Ashoke Pandit Show that Gulzar was adamant about stripping away all the glitz and glam.
She shared a memorable story about her first day on set: Gulzar took one look at her chic hairdo and bluntly told her, “If you look like this, what will I tell Hema ji?” Farida admitted she was angry because she wanted to look as glamorous as everyone else. But Gulzar was firm, insisting, “Kaam dikhana hai, yeh sab nahi dikhana aapko” (You need to showcase your talent, not your looks). Farida ended up swapping her stylish hairdo for a simpler look, all in the name of artistic integrity!
Farida Jalal also recalled how Gulzar made her realise her true potential. She remembered, “There was one scene where my husband dies, and he said, ‘In this, you have to scream and cry. You wanted to be a serious actor, now show me what you’re made of’. He made me do that in one shot, then he told Sanjeev Kumar about it. I met Sanjeev Kumar on a different film’s set, and he told me, ‘Suna hai bada acha shot kiya, murda bhi rone laga (I heard you gave such a nice shot that even the dead character teared up)’.”
Farida Jalal also remembered Gulzar’s advice before they shot a song sequence in Goa. He came into her room and said, “He came into my room and said, ‘Aaj aapka gaana hai, Mumtaz mat ban jaana, extra phool aur yeh woh. Log tareef karte hain ke aap dialogue naturally bolti hain, waise hi gaana karna hai (Today you have a song. Don’t turn into Mumtaz with extra glamour and embellishments. People praise you for delivering dialogues naturally, so sing the same way).”
Farida Jalal was last seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s web series Heeramandi.
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