Saroj Khan ‘yelled at’ Shruti Seth during Fanaa shoot: ‘Are you worthy of being here?’

The actor further added, “We actually spent a lot of time together on set. We would play chess, scrabble together and chat all the time. To be choreographed by Saroj ji, directed by Kunal Kohli, work with such great co-stars, and produced by YRF, it is a beautiful memory to carry forward in your life.”

When asked about late legendary choreographer Saroj Khan’s widely known strict and demanding nature, she replied, “Mujhe bahut daant padi unse (I got scolded by her). The thing is that one understands the world that all your legends come from. We can sit today and say that one shouldn’t talk to their crew like that, but if one is able to just lean into a little bit of generosity and look at it from the point of view that someone treats their craft like a religion.”

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She continued, “Any disrespect towards it brings out a certain response, which then you can sort of understand. You may not be able to excuse it, there is a softer way to do things, but I can expand my heart a little bit and say that I get why she expects perfection from people. It wasn’t a hierarchical thing at all. You had to be at your absolute best, because she was always her best. That is the one thing that separates the legends from the novices. They give the same kind of time, effort, and attention to their craft and they demand off of you.”

Shruti Seth then recalled the exact incident which led to Khan scolding her, and asking her a tough question. “I got yelled at because I was busy chatting with my then boyfriend, while she was giving instructions. She said, ‘Come here now. Everyone will stop and Shruti will perform for everyone’. It was the most mortifying experience of my life. She went off and said, ‘Do you think you’re worthy of being here?’ I was just so nervous. Not in exactly those words but she basically wanted to ask how I can be distracted,” she revealed.

The actor added, “I was shooting Shararat at that time so I couldn’t go for rehearsals, which is why she was even more irritated. The most wonderful thing about her is that the moment we were off camera, once the job was done, she was like a mother hen to everybody. She didn’t carry that irritability of demand for rigour off camera, she wanted us to be who we wanted to be. It is the bare minimum, she wasn’t asking for a lot. I miss having mentors like that, who used to demand giving your hundred percent.”

The film was based on a blind Kashmiri woman (Kajol) who falls in love with a tour guide – Rehan Qadri (Aamir). After her eyesight is restored, she gets to know that Rehan died in a terrorist attack, but later discovers he is an operative for a separatist organization and is alive. Fanaa was banned in the state of Gujarat and faced several issues during its release at the theatres.

Opening up about how the movie would have released in the changing socio-political climate, Shruti said, “All films should be released at all times. I don’t think there was anything problematic with the messaging of Fanaa per se. I think worse films are releasing in today’s time. Fanaa was quintessentially a love story. That was the heart and soul of the film. I don’t think there was anything like it being unpatriotic or jingoistic. I think it had a very balanced narrative.”

Fanaa was produced by Yash Raj Films and directed by Kunal Kohli. It also starred Rishi Kapoor, Kirron Kher, and Tabu.