This director-producer is known for being quite particular about how he wants things to be. Perhaps that is what makes him one of the most successful filmmakers in Bollywood, known for delivering some quality content. However, back in the 90s, he did something unexpected when he asked an actress to stay indoors so that the world doesn’t see her. He wanted to keep the cast a surprise for a movie, which featured a star kid. The revelation was made by a director, who worked as an assistant to this renowned filmmaker.
So who is this director, actress, and star kid? Well, we are talking about Vidhu Vinod Chopra. During the late 90s, Vidhu was working with Bobby Deol for the film Kareeb. It starred Shabana Raza in the lead role. In an interview, Siddharth P. Malhotra, who worked as an assistant with Chopra for the film, revealed how the filmmaker asked Shabana to be inside an apartment. “Vinod sir had kept me in charge of Shabana. She was supposed to be kept in an apartment somewhere in Bandra. He wanted the world to see her only the day he brought her out,” Malhotra revealed.
Siddharth had revealed that VVC wanted Shabana to have Madhubala-like quality in her performance. Hence, he showed the actress some tapes of Madhubala. Kareeb was released in 1998 and was a flop at the box office. In a past interview, Shabana revealed that she was also forced to change her name. The actress told Rediff, “But they saw me on television and coaxed me to do the film. They chased me. I was not interested and refused. They spoke to my parents and got their approval.”
After Kareeb, Shabana worked in several movies like Hogi Pyaar Ki Jeet, Fiza, Rahul, Muskaan, Acid Factory, etc., and quit the film industry. In 2006, the actress married Manoj Bajpayee and the duo has a daughter named Ava Nayla Bajpayee.
