Shabana Azmi recalls when Farooq Sheikh was offended as someone assumed they were a couple: ‘If you are going to curse me…’

Shabana Azmi and Farooq Sheikh worked together for a long time as they travelled with their play Tumhari Amrita.

New Delhi | March 21, 2023 09:52 PM IST

2 min read

Shabana Azmi shared an anecdote about Farooq Sheikh from their college days.

Shabana Azmi and late actor Farooq Sheikh worked together for a long time as they travelled with their play Tumhari Amrita for over two decades. In a recent chat, Shabana recalled a hilarious anecdote from their college days when Farooq was offended when an old woman on the street assumed that they were a couple.

In a chat with Pinkvilla, Shabana recalled that they were in college when they were both preparing for a play and had gone out to get some props. “An old lady was asking for money so Farooq gave her 8 annas and she blessed us saying, ‘Bhagwan tumhari jodi salamat rakhe (May God keep your love blessed).’ So Farooq snatched the money back and said, ‘Agar mujhe aisi bad dua deni hai toh lao mere paise (If you are going to curse me like that, then return my money).'”

Shabana laughed and said, “He used to do such things all the time. He used to tease me all the time but when I needed him, he was always there.”

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Shabana Azmi recalled that during one of the performances of their play Tumhari Amrita, at Taj Mahal, she pondered if it was time to call it a day on this play as they had already been doing it for 22 years. “He said we will do it for 22 more years and 14 days later, he was gone,” she said. The Arth actor continued, “The finality of somebody, the unpredictability of it, is really… What it does to you, it tells you that you must live every day as if it’s your last day.”

Shabana also said that Farooq “did not take his talent seriously”. “I think he was light weight about his talent but he was a very very talented actor,” she said.

Farooq Shaikh passed away in 2013.

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