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Film producer and former chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification, Pahlaj Nihalani spoke about launching the late actor Divya Bharti in the film industry, and narrated a story about how she threw a tantrum because she didn’t want to be cast opposite Chunky Panday in the 1993 film Aankhen.
In an interview with Bollywood Thikana, Pahlaj said that when he first laid eyes on Divya Bharti, he felt that she wasn’t in the best shape, and advised her to lose weight. He eventually cast her in the film Shola Aur Shabnam, directed by David Dhawan and starring Govinda. He said in Hindi, “We hadn’t started shooting the film yet, and she approached me via a secretary. I saw her pictures and felt she looked a little plump. I told the secretary that she must lose weight before starting work. In the meantime, we started shooting.”
He said that Divya joined the production when only around five days were left. The entire movie had been filmed without a heroine. “This was the first time I met her in person, and I liked what I saw. She immediately signed many films after that,” he said.
Asked if Divya Bharti was also supposed to do Aankhen with him, the producer recalled, “Yes, Divya, Pooja Bhatt and Juhi Chawla were supposed to do the film originally. I decided that Divya should be paired with Chunky and Ritu Shivpuri should be opposite Govinda. When David told her this, she was hassled. She called me up, and began threatening to do things. She threw a big tantrum, and summoned me. I went to meet her, and she said, ‘I’ve heard that I’m opposite Chunky?’ I said yes. She refused to do the film.”
Divya Bharti died at the young age of 19, after falling from the balcony of her home. Already one of the highest-paid female actors of her time, many felt that she would’ve gone on to become a superstar over the course of her career.
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