EXCLUSIVE: Divya Dutta recalls being disappointed for essaying Preity Zinta’s friend in Veer Zaara: I thought I’d become typecasted as heroine ki dost

Actor Divya Dutta essayed the role of Preity Zinta’s friend Shabbo in Shah Rukh Khan starrer Veer Zaara. But did you know that she thought she would be playing Zaara’s role after Yash Chopra approached her with the movie? During a candid chat with Bollywood Bubble, Divya narrated how she became Shabbo in the movie.

Divya Dutta reveals she thought she will play Preity’s role in Veer Zaara

When asked to narrate the story of becoming Shabbo, she recalled, “I had a desire to become a Yash Chopra heroine. Since childhood, I have been daydreaming where I’m wearing Chiffon sarees just like a Yash Chopra heroine. During my auditions, Yash ji was sitting with us, I wished I had worked with him as his heroine. One day, I got a call when I was in London, saying Yash ji and Aditya Chopra wanted to meet me. I came here and met them and they said they were making a film titled Veer Zaara and I was Zaara in my head already.“

“Then he narrated the story and I was mesmerised, it had Shah Rukh Khan and I felt this was it. Shah Rukh + Yash Chopra and Aditya’s writing, I couldn’t have asked for more. They said the film also has Rani Mukerji, Preity Zinta, Manoj Bajpayee, Anupam Kher. Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Kiron Kher, and Boman Irani. I was like ‘Excuse me, what am I doing here’?,” she continued.

Divya Dutta reveals how she got convinced to become Shabbo

The Bhaag Milkha Bhaag actor told us, “Then he said ‘I want you to do Shabbo’s part who is Zaara’s friend and I didn’t say anything. I thought at that time and even today that if you do a friend’s role, you become typecasted by everyone as the heroine’s friend which I didn’t want. I didn’t say anything. But then Aditya said, ‘If anyone could have done this role then we wouldn’t have come to you’ and it’s a big thing to say. He also said, ‘Mark my words, you will be remembered for this role forever’.“

“I came back and I told my mother, ‘Mamma, this is not the heroine role. So mom asked me if anyone was going to make a film with you and I said ‘no’. She said ‘I don’t have so much money to make a film with you and you don’t have any godfather. Then what will you do’? I said I wanted to wait for a little longer and she asked me, ‘For how long will you wait? Do any of you know that you’re a good actor,’ I said ‘No’. Then she said, ‘Do this role with so much earnestly that people say I want this girl for my film,'” she concluded.

When Divya Dutta revealed she hated people typecasting her

Divya then added that after the role, several contemporaries of hers have been doing similar roles. It didn’t matter to them if they were doing the lead role and then doing a side character. However, it did matter a lot back then. She continued, “Back then, people didn’t know what should we call her and I always used to get annoyed when people called me a ‘supporting actor’. I would say just call me an actor as I used to do all kinds of roles. I have become a heroine, a comedian and have become a villain.”

Adding that people were confused to put her in what category. She also mentioned that when people typecasted her after Veer Zaara, she did Delhi 6. When people typecasted her again for being a sexy girl, she did Stanley Ka Dabba.

Watch the full interview

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