Juhi Babbar opens up about her bond with her co-stars from The Great Shamsuddin Family, Kritika Kamra and Shreya Dhanwanthary. She also gushes over Farida Jalal and reveals how the veteran actor never got her due
Juhi Babbar
Before meeting director Anusha Rizvi for The Great Shamsuddin Family, Juhi Babbar had not been familiar with her work. So, she was surprised by Rizvi’s firm belief that Babbar was the perfect fit for the eldest daughter of the Shamsuddin family.
“She had already seen my plays. We met at Prithvi Theatre and she was acting so friendly, telling me she knew me inside out, describing to me how I sit, pose, and talk. But it was the first time we were meeting. What amazed me is that she was so sure she wanted me for this character,” Babbar shares. She is only glad she surrendered to her director’s vision, as the JioHotstar film brought her together with co-stars she now calls friends — especially Kritika Kamra and Shreya Dhanwanthary.
(Clockwise from top) Shreya Dhanwanthary, Juhi Babbar, and Kritika Kamra in ‘The Great Shamsuddin Family’
“For a family film like this, it is important that we have the correct bonding. Actors need to gel with each other. And Anusha tried that with a workshop. She called us before the shoot, but somehow it didn’t really turn out like a workshop. It became about blocking scenes. However, through that we created our own bond. I thank whoever up there planned it this way for the three of us, Kritika, Shreya and me. It was important that three of us were [emotionally] aligned as we play sisters,” she says.
The Great Shamsuddin Family also stars Sheeba Chadha, Purab Kohli, and veteran actor Farida Jalal, who makes selective screen appearances now. Babbar, a longtime admirer of Jalal, cannot stop gushing about the experience of working with her. “I absolutely loved working with Faridaji,” she says. Apparently, Babbar’s mother Nadira has also been a fan since watching Jalal’s earliest films, dating back to the 1960s. “Mammo [1994] is one of my favourite films of Faridaji. I feel that she is one actor who never really got her due. A film like Mammo came, but didn’t get noticed the way it should have been. I feel sad that so many female actors of that generation and bracket did not get their due and roles,” she says.
15
Number of plays Juhi Babbar did as an actor, a director, and playwright
Did you know?
Juhi Babbar made her Bollywood debut with ‘Kaash… Aap Hamare Hote’ (2003) and in television, she kickstarted with ‘Ghar Ki Baat Hai’ (2009)
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