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Veteran actor Farida Jalal, known for her roles in films like Aradhana and Gopi, shared her memories of working with two legendary actors, Rajesh Khanna and Dilip Kumar. She described Khanna as arrogant and disrespectful on set, while she had only praise for Dilip Kumar, whom she considered like a brother.
In an interview, she mentioned how Dilip Kumar showed tough love towards her and became emotional as she spoke about his kindness.
Talking to Bollywood Bubble about her time working on Gopi, she said, “I was a hardcore Dilip Kumar fan; him and Meena Kumari both. I still am. He’ll always remain in our hearts. When the offer for Gopi came, I knew that I had to do it. I learned so much from him during Gopi, both as an actor and as a human being. He was the kind of person who would spot an elderly light man drinking tea by himself, and say, ‘Why are you sitting alone?’ He’d go over and share the tea with him, and drink from his saucer. I couldn’t believe this.”
She further mentioned,“And he didn’t do it to make a fake impression, he didn’t do it for appearances. Some people did that as well. Nobody was looking. Only I was there. That’s who he was. There was nobody else like him. I considered him as my brother.”
She remembered how the famous actor used to tell her off for not looking after herself and gaining weight. He would also monitor what she ate, but then he would realize he was being too harsh and be more lenient.
She added,“I still call him ‘bhaijaan’. “He taught me that no matter how successful you become in life, it’s important to keep your feet firmly on the ground. Money will come and go, but the audience’s love and respect is forever.”
In contrast, she didn’t have many good things to say about Rajesh Khanna. She remembered, “I would think this man is very proud, very arrogant. When I would ask for rehearsal, he would say ‘How many rehearsals?’ I was a newcomer. I felt very bad. I even said ‘How can you talk to me like that? I can ask for 10 rehearsals if I want’. We fought there, Sharmila ji intervened. She protected me, she would speak in my defence.”
In an interview, she mentioned how Dilip Kumar showed tough love towards her and became emotional as she spoke about his kindness.
Talking to Bollywood Bubble about her time working on Gopi, she said, “I was a hardcore Dilip Kumar fan; him and Meena Kumari both. I still am. He’ll always remain in our hearts. When the offer for Gopi came, I knew that I had to do it. I learned so much from him during Gopi, both as an actor and as a human being. He was the kind of person who would spot an elderly light man drinking tea by himself, and say, ‘Why are you sitting alone?’ He’d go over and share the tea with him, and drink from his saucer. I couldn’t believe this.”
She further mentioned,“And he didn’t do it to make a fake impression, he didn’t do it for appearances. Some people did that as well. Nobody was looking. Only I was there. That’s who he was. There was nobody else like him. I considered him as my brother.”
She remembered how the famous actor used to tell her off for not looking after herself and gaining weight. He would also monitor what she ate, but then he would realize he was being too harsh and be more lenient.
She added,“I still call him ‘bhaijaan’. “He taught me that no matter how successful you become in life, it’s important to keep your feet firmly on the ground. Money will come and go, but the audience’s love and respect is forever.”
In contrast, she didn’t have many good things to say about Rajesh Khanna. She remembered, “I would think this man is very proud, very arrogant. When I would ask for rehearsal, he would say ‘How many rehearsals?’ I was a newcomer. I felt very bad. I even said ‘How can you talk to me like that? I can ask for 10 rehearsals if I want’. We fought there, Sharmila ji intervened. She protected me, she would speak in my defence.”
