Shashi Kapoor offered newcomer Shekhar Suman Utsav with Rekha, Amitabh: ‘Unprecedented’ | Bollywood News

Shekhar Suman’s first film opportunity came through Shammi

Recalling how he got his first film role, Shekhar said he had completed his acting diploma at the Sri Ram Centre for Performing Arts and spent two years working with a repertory company when actor and filmmaker Shammi visited them with an offer.

“Shammi ji came to the repertory company one day. She said she was making a film called Pighalta Aasman, which had Shashi Kapoor and Rakhee in it. There was a cameo role, and she wanted a young man for a scene with Rakhee. Everyone raised their hands because they were excited about the opportunity. Eventually, I was selected. She said I looked good for the role and that I should do it,” he recalled.

Shammi then asked her production assistant to bring Shekhar from Delhi to Mumbai. However, the assistant took six days to arrive. Shekhar said he waited with his suit packed because he had been told that the production did not have a suit for him and he would have to bring his own.

Shekhar Suman and Rekha in a still from Utsav.

“When the production assistant finally arrived in an Ambassador car on the sixth day, he took me to Mumbai. That was the first time I saw Shashi Kapoor and Rakhee ji. The scene was approved in the very first take,” Shekhar said.

Pighalta Aasman, released in 1985, featured Shashi Kapoor, Rakhee and Rati Agnihotri. Shekhar appeared in a small role in the film.

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How Shashi Kapoor offered Shekhar Suman the lead role in Utsav

After completing the shoot, Shekhar returned to Delhi but asked Shammi if he could contact her whenever he came to Mumbai. She gave him her phone number.

“When I came to Mumbai, the first call I made was to her. The film was still being shot, and she invited me to the set. Shashi ji was shooting that day and was sitting alone. I sat beside him, and within 10 minutes, he offered me Utsav,” Shekhar recalled.

The actor said he had been in Mumbai for only 15 days when the unexpected offer came his way.

“He told me, ‘I am making a big film called Utsav, in which Amitabh Bachchan is playing a negative role for the first time. The film is being made in both English and Hindi.’ He then told me they were looking for a hero and asked, ‘Would you be the hero of the film?’”

Shekhar said he was stunned by the offer, especially because he had only recently arrived in Mumbai and had heard so many stories about the struggle actors go through to get a break.

“Just imagine, a person has been in Mumbai for only 15 days. He has heard so many stories about how much one has to struggle, and here he was being offered such a role,” he said.

The surprise did not end there. Shekhar recalled that Shashi told him Rekha would be his leading lady.

“He said, ‘When you are chosen, your heroine will be Rekha.’ I thought it was a joke. Even today, I think it was the most unprecedented break. People talk about nepotism, but Shashi Kapoor had two sons of his own who wanted to become actors. Yet, instead of choosing either of them, he said he wanted to cast me,” he recalled.

Shekhar Suman and Rekha in a still from Utsav.

Shekhar Suman says he was selected after auditioning with 400 actors

Despite the initial offer, Shekhar still had to go through the selection process. He recalled that around 400 actors turned up for the screen test for Utsav.

“I reached the venue for the screen test, and there were 400 people there. I was selected from among them. Girish ji said everyone could go home except Shekhar,” he recalled.

According to Shekhar, director Girish Karnad told him that Jennifer Kapoor, Shashi’s wife, would have to approve the choice, followed by Rekha, who needed to be comfortable performing intimate scenes with a newcomer.

“After that, I got the film,” he said.

Utsav, released in 1984, was directed by Girish Karnad and produced by Shashi Kapoor. Based on the Sanskrit play Mrichchhakatika (The Little Clay Cart), the film featured Rekha, Shashi Kapoor, Shekhar Suman and several other actors.

Shekhar Suman on Amitabh Bachchan’s role in Utsav

During the conversation, Shekhar also recalled that Amitabh Bachchan was initially supposed to play the role that Shashi eventually took on in the film.

“The role that Amitabh Bachchan was going to play was eventually played by Shashi Kapoor,” he said.

Utsav received critical appreciation for its performances, music and visual treatment, but did not perform well commercially, with producer Shashi Kapoor reportedly incurring heavy losses.

For Shekhar, the film marked the beginning of a career that would span cinema and television. He went on to appear in films such as Anubhav and Tridev, before becoming a familiar face on television with shows such as Dekh Bhai Dekh, Reporter and Movers & Shakers.