Kajol, who has over thirty films on her resume in a career spanning 25 years, recently revealed behind-the-scenes trivia about her career choices. In an interview with news agency PTI, the 44-year-old actress named her 1998 film Dushman as one of her favourite movies along with her Bollywood debut Bekhudi and 1994's Udhar Ki Zindagi. Speaking to PTI, Kajol added that she had initially rejected the Tanuja Chandra-directed film as she was unwilling to feature in a rape scene. "I had said 'no' to it because I did not want to do a film with a rape scene in it. I didn't want to enact that. I felt it would be difficult for me. I am not comfortable with somebody doing that to me on-screen, even for a shot or whatever," PTI quoted the actress as saying.
Kajol only agreed to come on board for the project after the director and producer Pooja Bhatt convinced her that the sequence will be shot aesthetically and with a body double. "They told me they just need one close-up shot and that they will manage it. They lived up to their promise. When you watch the film, you can't make out. They handled it so well. I am glad I did the film," Kajol added.
In the critically acclaimed movie, Kajol featured in dual roles - she played the roles of twin sisters, one of who becomes prey to a villainous rapist-murderer, famously played by Ashutosh Rana. Kajol also co-starred with Sanjay Dutt in the revenge drama. "There were two sisters, so you have comparisons against yourself. You had to be better than yourself in a weird way. We had to work towards that, but it was a fabulous learning experience," Kajol said, sharing more about her experience of filming Dushman.
"There were so many parts in the film where there were no dialogues. There were lengthy scenes but at the same time, a lot was established without saying too much. Everything was done in a subtle way," she added. Dushman fetched Ashutosh Rana the Filmfare Award for Best Performance In A Negative Role while Kajol was nominated as Best Actress.
Kajol is currently looking forward to the release of Helicopter Eela, her film with National Award-winning actor Riddhi Sen. She was last seen in Dhanush's VIP 2 and will also feature in a cameo in Shah Rukh Khan's Christmas release Zero. Helicopter Eela releases on October 12.
(With inputs from PTI)
