Do you know? Fans hailed Sanjay Kapoor’s scene slapping Madhuri Dixit in Raja; director Indra Kumar recalls

Actor Sanjay Kapoor made his debut with the film Prem in 1995, but it was his second film Raja that made him popular overnight. The film also starred Madhuri Dixit and their chemistry was also most-talked that time. However, director Indra Kumar beleieved that his career was over after the film’s release and audience didn’t had faith in the actor. He recalled an instance and shared how after the release, audience clapped when Madhuri Dixit slapped Sanjay Kapoor.

Indra Kumar on failure of Prem impacting Raja

In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Indra Kumar recalled, “After giving two successful films, I reshot Raja. When I watched the original film, I quiet didn’t understand certain scenes. I realised my mistake, so I rewrote the script and shot it again. That picture too went on to become a super hit.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Sanjay Kapoor (@sanjaykapoor2500)

He shares why he thought Raja was his last film. “Just three weeks before the release of Raja, another film of Sanjay Kapoor with Tabu (Prem) had released. But it flopped. People started making fun of me. Even I lost hope. In my mind, I thought, ‘Indra Kumar, consider this your last film. After this, let’s go to Haridwar.’” Explaining his state of mind, Indra Kumar who had just directed the third film of his career, shared, “Now my hero was Sanjay Kapoor, whose previous film flopped so everybody was talking about him. It could have had a bad impact on my film. I lost hope. But, thanks to my stars, and Madhuri Dixit, and Saroj Khan, and my writers, they all saved this film for me”, he shared.

When audience clapped as Madhuri Dixit slapped Sanjay Kapoor

Recalling the moment he went to witness audience reaction, director shares, “When I was watching the movie in Novelty (theatre), the same people who were ridiculing Sanjay Kapoor for his previous film, were clapping for him on the scene where he slaps Madhuri Dixit.” The filmmaker smiled as he shared the incident. He proudly explained, “There is a scene where Madhuri Dixit accuses Sanjay Kapoor’s brother of harassing her, but he slaps her instead and takes his brother’s side. He refuses to believe her. The entire Novelty theatre was clapping. That’s how much power the script holds.”

Raja was released in 1995, and featured an ensemble cast including Madhuri Dixit and Sanjay Kapoor, Paresh Rawal, Mukesh Khanna, Dalip Tahil, Rita Bhaduri and Himani Shivpuri in key roles. 

Also Read: Did you know Madhuri Dixit was called a ‘jinxed’ actor when she starred in Dil with Aamir Khan? Director Indra Kumar spill the beans