Bollywood Actress Divya Dutta recounted stories of working with the “Badshah of Bollywood”, Shah Rukh Khan, in her recent interview. She said that she was awestruck by Shah Rukh’s humble attitude towards his fellow co-actors.
In a recent interview with Siddharth Kannan, she recalled the various stories of Shah Rukh’s generosity. She talked about how he helped her by recommending her name for the classic film “Dil se” to director Mani Ratnam.
Recounting the story of her meeting with him at Connaught Place ,she said “I wanted to do the film, and Shah Rukh and I had the same manager at that time. He suggested that I show up on set and ask him to get Mani Ratnam’s number. I didn’t have a mobile phone then, so I landed up at Connaught Place exactly when I was told to, and watched from the side as they filmed a a chase scene. Thousands of people had gathered to get a glimpse of Shah Rukh, there wasn’t an inch of space to stand on”
Divya added that because of the crowd, she thought that there was no chance of the meeting. So, she decided to leave but then someone came and escorted her through the crowd towards Shah Rukh’s vanity van. “He opened the door for me and held my hand… Such a ladies’ man he is. He asked how he could help, and I told him that I really want to do the film. He asked if I’d like some coffee, and told me that he would convey my message to Mani Ratnam. ‘That’s all I can do,’ he said. The crowd was right outside, screaming his name, rocking the car…”said Divya
Divya said that she did get to meet Mani Ratnam who told her that she couldn’t be cast in the film due to her similar looks with Manisha Koirala.
Her next meeting with Shah Rukh Khan was on the set of the classic cult film “Veer Zaara” in which they were co-actors.
She praised Mr. Khan for guiding her about the camera angles. Recalling his advice, she said, “He mentioned that he wouldn’t always be present on every set, so I needed to learn to manage on my own.”
In the same interview, she also highlighted her apprehension about being type casted in Bollywood. She said, “I was worried I would be stereotyped as the best friend of all heroines in the industry. There is a herd mentality in our industry. Everyone runs after the one who looks good and leaves the rest behind,”
Recently, Divya featured in Tahira Kashyap’s “Sharmajee Ki Beti” while SRK is working for his upcoming film “King”.