Sooraj Barjatya kept apologising to Renuka Shahane during Hum Aapke Hai Koun death scene, Reema Lagoo started crying: ‘He gave sponge stairs’

It was difficult for Renuka Shahane to shoot the death scene in Hum Aapke Hai Koun as director Sooraj Barjatya kept apologising to her and the cast broke down.

By: Entertainment Desk

New Delhi | April 26, 2023 03:07 PM IST

4 min read

Renuka Shahane in a scene from Hum Aapke Hai Koun. (Photo: Rajshri Productions)

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Sooraj Barjatya’s Hum Aapke Hai Koun brought many families together in the cinema halls when it released in 1994. The one scene which broke many hearts was where Renuka Shahane’s character Pooja falls from the stairs and dies. It was a difficult scene to shoot for Renuka — not because she was scared to fall — but as Barjatya kept apologising to her. The scene also didn’t come easy for actor Reema Lagoo who played the role of Shahane’s mother in the movie.

In one of her earlier interviews, Shahane had revealed fascinating details about shooting her death scene in the family drama which has gained cult status over the years. She told Rajshri in an interview that Barjatya apologised to her throughout the day when they had to shoot the scene where she falls from the stairs after the song “Lo Chali Main”.

Shahane narrated, “The day we had to shoot for the scene where I fall from the stairs, Sooraj Barjatya kept apologising to me. I told him, ‘Sir aap itna sorry kyun keh rahe hain, ye film ka hissa hai. It is not real (Sir, why are you apologising, this is a part of the film)’. He gave sponge stairs to fall on as he didn’t want anyone to get hurt on his set. It was funny that he kept apologising for something which was part of the script.”

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To shoot for her death scene was not easy for Shahane and in her opinion, “Dying on-screen is very difficult.” She shared, “Sooraj ji wanted my face to look gentle and have an expression of satisfaction. But my eyes kept fluttering. He was repeatedly telling me to breathe calmly. If you look at it in the movie, you won’t see my eyes shut completely as they couldn’t show that.”

However, the scene was shot and everyone who was on the set that day, was left in tears. Reema Lagoo couldn’t stop crying much after Barjatya called ‘cut’. Shahane revealed, “Reema tai was touched by that scene. Sometimes an actor is so involved…and she was involved with her character of a mother. She couldn’t stop crying. She was crying even after going back in the makeup room.”

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On the set, Lagoo and Shahane shared the makeup room and developed a strong bond with each other. After the scene, Shahane went up to Lagoo and tried to comfort her. “I went up to her, hugged her and told her this is all unreal. But she took a lot of time to settle down after that scene. Even Dilip Joshi was crying during that scene,” shared Shahane. Reema Lagoo died at the age of 59 in 2017, after suffering a cardiac arrest.

Hum Aapke Hain Koun…! also starred Mohnish Bahl, Bindu, Satish Shah, Himani Shivpuri, Dilip Joshi, Salman Khan. Madhuri Dixit and Laxmikant Berde.

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