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‘Aishwarya Rai se mujra kara diya’: When Bhansali was ridiculed for ‘Nimbooda’
Sanjay Leela Bhansali had his first massive hit with Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam but even the success of that film came with a few critical opinions.
Aishwarya Rai in 'Nimbooda' from Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali is known as one of the most prolific filmmakers of Hindi cinema but even he started with a failure with Khamoshi. His debut film, which released in 1996, bombed at the box office but he, in his own words, channelised his anger, and went ahead to make Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. The film established Aishwarya Rai as one of the most promising talents of the era. While today, the film is considered a classic by many, at the time, it was ridiculed by many, including a few who equated Aishwarya’s dance number ‘Nimbooda’ to a ‘mujra’.
Back in 1999, Bhansali expressed his frustration at the workings of Indian cinema and shared with Rediff that even someone like Steven Spielberg would “run away from this kind of pressure from distributors, producers, stars and the audience.” He recalled the comments he received for the film when a few critics said, “Kya Aishwarya se mujra kara diya hai (Aishwarya was made to do a mujra).”
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Bhansali said that he was so particular about every detail of the film that he worked 24 hours a day and was “like a possessed man burning from inside and full of energy.” By his own admission, he “drove my whole unit crazy.” It is now well known that Bhansali is a hard taskmaster and has the tendency to get furious on his set.
He shared that he picked up every costume and jewellery by himself and said, “I personally went to Bhuleshwar to pick up dresses for all my artistes for the garba dance. Smita Jayakar’s smallest of jewellery was selected with care. The colour of the curtains, the texture of the sofa etc were carefully chosen. I was particular even about the thickness of Aishwarya’s kajal.”
Aishwarya Rai and Salman Khan in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam.
Bhansali said that the failure of Khmoshi gave him “sleepless” night and for two months, he was rather angry as his film had failed to reach the common man. But even back then, he was well aware of the workings of the film industry. “In this industry, some people celebrate other people’s failures. My anger gave me confidence,” he said.
In the last few years, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam has been rewatched by a new generation of audience and many found problems with the representation of female characters in the film. Shortly after the success of the film, when he was asked about the “traditional” demeanour of his lead female character. He said, “I like women behaving like women,” and also added, “I don’t like women with short hair. The burden of the bun is important.”
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In the same chat, Bhansali said that he suffered through “humiliation” in his growing up years as he came from a middle class family. Describing himself as “troubled,” Bhansali said he had a “traumatic childhood.”
In an earlier interview with Rendezvous with Simi Garewal, Bhansali had spoken about his mother managing the household since his father was an alcoholic. This led to severe financial problems and violence in the household. There were moneylenders who were always at the house. We would be looked down upon at social gatherings like weddings because my father would be drunk,” he said.
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