EXCLUSIVE: Mahima Chaudhry RECALLS nasty remarks by media post horrific accident: They called me a ‘scarface’

Mahima Chaudhry was at the peak of her career and stardom when things came crashing down. She stepped into Bollywood alongside Shah Rukh Khan in Pardes in 1997. However, while shooting for her next project, Dil Kya Kare, she met with a horrific accident. The road accident left Mahima Chaudhry broken both physically and emotionally. Recalling the horrific accident on Bollywood Bubble’s ‘Her Story’ Mahima Chaudhry shared how her life changed, and how she lost hope.

Mahima also reminisced how the media passed distasteful remarks against her post the accident, and how she witnessed her strong father breaking down looking at her state. “When I had the accident, they (the media) came to the sets when nobody was allowed. They took a shot from the far because I still had the scars on my face. And they put a photo on Stardust and wrote, ‘Mahima’s had an accident and we can finally call her scarface.’ It still hurts me (gets teary-eyed). How nasty can you be?” an emotional Mahima expressed.

While the media tried to pull her down, her co-stars and producers, Ajay Devgn and Kajol became her pillar of support. “Ajay and Kajol, who were the producers, sought that nobody came to know about it, because at that time, it would have devastated my career, “she said.

“I thought I would never make a comeback, it would never heal, and I would never look normal. But Ajay was like I get scars like this all the time. I was like he is being nice because he does not want me to lose heart. But, actually, he was right. He was a very generous producer, he looked after everything,” Mahima shared as she praised Ajay for his support.

Ask her how the incident took place, Mahima recalls, “It was the last day of the shoot in Banglore, and I was going to the school where the shoot was. It was early morning, normally you get staff to be in the car ahead of you or behind you. I was ready at 5.30 am and I was supposed to be there at 7 am. I told my staff to leave before me, otherwise, people will think I’m not ready. But, my mother asked ‘Why can’t you go if you’re ready?’ Then I sat in the car and left, but by that time, my staff had already left.”

She continued, “A dhood wala truck (milk truck) was coming from the wrong side, we were going roundabout. So, the truck came and smashed my car in the roundabout. The truck came and rammed into me, so, the glass came like bullets and splinters into my face all over. The pieces of glass did not hit me anywhere else, I did not break my bones. It was only my face.”

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The actress went on to share how the accident had left her father unsettled and heartbroken. “That is the only time I saw my father cry, who came a day after the surgery was done. It is after the surgery that the devastation shows and the swelling happens. My dad just sat next to me and took a deep sigh. My dad is very strong, and I’m more close to him. But this time he just sat and he couldn’t hold it. He said, ‘Sirf chehre pe laga hai. Why her?” she said as she tried to control her tears.

“I had to be strong, they all had hopes that I would be fine. But, I had no hope, I was clear. While healing, I was preparing a life away from cinema and was learning to cope with the fact that how I’m going to face the world. I was just preparing myself for that. So, anything that happened post that was God’s gift,” Mahima told us.

When we asked Mahima Chaudhry about the difficulties she faced to face the camera post-accident, she said, “The first time when I faced the camera, it was another guest appearance with Ajay in another film and that director was not aware. I very gently told him, can you just do long shots, and he agreed. I was hiding the left side of my face as it was hurt. And when I was giving long shots, suddenly, he just kept bringing the camera closer and closer, (gets emotional). It’s one of the things that stays with you and you can imagine if I’m still hurting what it felt it, and I couldn’t keep a straight face back then.”

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