Shabana Azmi excavated her photo archive and struck 24 karat gold – a picture of herself and Dharmendra from the sets of an old film called Mardon Waali Baat. For those of you living under a rock, the two actors are currently Bollywood's Jodi number one because of Karan Johar's recently-released film Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani in which they share an endearing romance complete with a blockbuster kiss. The photo Shabana Azmi found shows her dressed in an orange saree, Dharmendra's arm around her. "At the time Jamini from Rocky Aur Rani must have met Kanwalji ! From Mardon Wali Baat," she captioned the picture, tagging KJo.
Jamini and Kanwal are the names of the characters Shabana Azmi and Dharmendra play in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. Her estimation of the timeline is at fault, however – Mardon Waali Baat was released in 1988 and the black and white photo that Jamini and Kanwal have as a remembrance in Rocky Aur Rani seems to be from an earlier decade. However, in metaphorical terms, the Mardon Waali Baat photo is chronologically correct.
Celebrating the Jamini-Kanwal romance with this photo of Shabana Azmi and Dharmendra from way back when:
A comment on Shabana Azmi's post suggests that the photo should have been used in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. "This pic should have been used in the movie. What a good looking and graceful pair," it read – can't argue with that. Manish Malhotra, who designed Rani's wardrobe (Alia Bhatt played Rani), left a heart emoji. Several comments praised the Jamini-Kanwal plotline.
Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani stars Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh as Rocky. Jamini and Kanwal are Rani's grandmother and Rocky's grandfather and their interrupted romance is the kernel from which the prem kahaani of the title develops. Jaya Bachchan co-stars as Kanwal's wife, Rocky's grandmother and the primary antagonist of the film.