Shabana Azmi Recalls Fight With Mira Nair Over Rekha: 'What Does She Have That I Don’t?'

Mira Nair is renowned for her acclaimed films, including the 1996 movie Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, which starred Rekha and gained international acclaim despite being banned in India. Shabana Azmi had hoped to work more extensively with Nair after a brief role in her 2012 film The Reluctant Fundamentalist, alongside Riz Ahmed, Liev Schreiber, Kate Hudson, and Keifer Sutherland. At the New York Indian Film Festival, Azmi expressed her desire for a more pivotal role in Nair’s future projects.

When Mira asked Shabana about the directors she’s worked with in her five-decade career, the Arth actress jokingly mentioned she’s been eager to collaborate with a specific director for years. “And finally, she gives me a tiny role that doesn’t do justice to our relationship or her faith in me, and that woman is sitting next to me,” Shabana added, as per Pinkvilla.

Mira laughed and shared a funny story about how she once chased Shabana into a women’s restroom at a five-star hotel in Juhu. She jokingly asked, “What does Rekha have that I don’t have?” The director added, “Humari pyaar ki ladayi hui in that ladies’ room.” Mira told Shabana that they would work together again soon.

Shabana has talked about being competitive with her colleagues before. Recently, she admitted to treating them unfairly. Speaking about her past rivalry with Smita Patil, Shabana told us that while there was some truth to their competition, things were blown out of proportion. “There was some truth to it. Smita and I treated each other like rivals, but media ne usko chadha diya, thoda sa tadka, mirch laga kar usko aur badhaya (the media blew it out of proportion), but I wouldn’t blame it entirely on the media,” said Shabana.

On the work front, Shabana Azmi is set to play a special role in Lahore, in 1947, portraying the character of a Hindu matriarch in Lahore. The storyline revolves around her insistence on living in an ancestral mansion, now owned by a Muslim family after the India-Pakistan partition. The film aims to depict the tragedy and pain inflicted upon families during this tumultuous period.