Anees Bazmee explains how he had to revise “Laadla’s” script to get Sridevi on board

• Divya Bharti, 19, was working on “Laadla” when she died in 1993.
• The film was a remake of a South film, which Bharti had previously rejected due to issues.
• Bazmee made adjustments to the script to convince Bharti to take on the role.

Divya Bharti’s sudden demise in 1993 shocked fans and industry insiders. She was only 19 when the incident occurred and was working on multiple films, including “Laadla”. Recently, Anees Bazmee, who wrote the screenplay for the film, recalled that they had almost completed the shoot but had to revise the script and reshoot it with Sridevi after Divya’s death.

In a candid interview with “Galatta India”, Anees Bazmee shared various anecdotes from his career, including “Laadla”. Divya Bharti was initially selected to play the lead role in the film and had completed most of the shoot. However, her sudden demise left “Laadla” in uncertainty.

As a result, they approached Sridevi to play the role. Bazmee mentioned that “Laadla” was a remake of a South film, and the “Chandni” actress had previously rejected it in Tamil and Telugu due to some issues. To convince her to take on the role, he had to make changes in the script to address those issues.

He said, “Boney Kapoor warned me that she might refuse the film in Hindi too, but I insisted he arrange a meeting. Before meeting her, I reflected on the reasons behind her rejection of the first two versions and made some adjustments accordingly. When I narrated my revised version of the story to her, she got excited.”

The writer-filmmaker shared that Divya’s sudden demise shocked the producer, Nitin Manmohan, as most of the film was completed except for its climax. Despite his grief over the “Deewana” actress’s death, he continued working and resumed shooting.

Anees said, “He (the producer) picked himself up, and we began shooting again. The second time, the film was shot very quickly because we had already made it once. It went on to be a super hit.”

“Laadla” starred Sridevi and Anil Kapoor in the lead roles, with Raj Kanwar directing it. The film became one of the highest-grossing films of 1994.

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