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Ameesha Patel says she ‘almost died’ during Gadar 2 shoot, real-life Tara Singh Sunny Deol came to her aid: ‘I didn’t wake up for 4 hours’

Ameesha Patel recollects the time she and Sunny Deol shot for Gadar 2 in a forest and how he helped her in a medical emergency on the film's set.

Ameesha Patel and Sunny Deol in a still from Gadar 2.

Following the phenomenal success of Gadar 2 in 2023, Ameesha Patel, who reprised her iconic role as Sakina, the love interest of Sunny Deol’s character Tara Singh, a fierce and passionate Sikh truck driver, shared a chilling behind-the-scenes account. The actress recalled how filming a crucial scene for the movie left her pushed to the limits, both physically and mentally, as she embodied the resilience and determination of Sakina, a character that has become an integral part of Indian cinema.

“It was physically and mentally draining. When I had spoken to Anil Sharma ji, I had said, ‘Anil ji, I’ll fall sick, please make sure that the water is hot.’ He had said, ‘haan, there will be hot water, don’t worry.’ However, when I went for the shot, I was wearing a thin cotton salwar kameez… This is the problem with heroines, unlike heroes who wear their jackets and leg warmers under their kurta pyjama. We can’t do that… The first time the water was showered on it, and I was shocked as it was freezing cold,” Ameesha recalled in an interview with Jarp Media.

The actress described how the crew had to go to great lengths to keep her warm, even resorting to giving her brandy to rub on her feet and to drink. However, despite their efforts, Ameesha’s condition deteriorated, and she eventually lost consciousness.

“After I finished the scene, which people don’t know, but my staff knows. They had to lift me and take me to my make-up van. I was unconscious. I did not wake up for three to four hours. People thought I was dead. Literally, I had reached the stage where people said, ‘she won’t survive.’ They had wrapped me in woolen blankets. When I finally woke up after four hours and opened my eyes, I was like, ‘where am I?’ I had zoned out. I had no recollection what I had gone through in those four hours. My team, people on the unit sighed in relief when I was up,” Ameesha said.

In the midst of this chaos, Ameesha’s co-star Sunny Deol proved to be a pillar of support. The actress fondly remembered how Sunny, who played the lead role of Tara Singh, took care of her during that difficult time.

“Sunny sir was my real-life Tara Singh. He was there for Sakina when I needed him. You won’t believe he got a blood pressure machine from his room to check my blood pressure, checked my temperature with a thermometer. We have a common doctor in Mumbai, Sunny was making calls to him because the local doctors there wanted to inject me because I was constantly vomiting. But Sunny did not want me to take any wrong injection that did not suit me. So he was so sweet. He was checking with Dr Agarwal (their doctor in Mumbai) to check what suits me and what does not. He was so sweet. He is my real-life Tara,” Ameesha added.

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