EXCLUSIVE: Farida Jalal says Rajesh Khanna ‘ghamandi the’; recalls his female fans DISGUSTED her- Here’s why

Actor Farida Jalal has worked with some big names like Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and many more. But she started her career by starring opposite the megastar Rajesh Khanna back in 1969 in Aradhana movie. She essayed the role of Renu, the lover of the second character of Rajesh Khanna. The movie was a gigantic hit and people loved Rajesh ji, especially the female population. But Farida Jalal has a different experience from Rajesh Khanna.

During a candid chat with Bollywood Bubble, Farida Jalal remembered how working with Rajesh Khanna was a pleasure experience. She shared how the actor had arrogance post Aradhana success and how girls were mad behind him. Jalal also recalled having arguments with him.

When asked about her working experience, she exclusively told us, “Jatin became Rajesh Khanna after the success of Aradhana and by that time, he became a little arrogant as well. After the release of Aradhana, it boosted; plus, he was in a double role. But it was a nice movie. I watch it also sometimes and it deserved all the success as he was very good in Aradhana. Adding that she used to call Sharmila Tagore ‘Rinku’ ji and used to talk from my side and used to protect me.“

Farida Jalal on Rajesh Khanna’s stardom

Farida ji said, ” To be honest, I never used to give him so much importance to him and he was a little annoyed because of that. After the release of the film, the film ran for weeks. It ran for 25 weeks and turned silver jubilee, 50 weeks gold jubilee, 75 weeks diamond jubilee and genuinely it was called the hit film.” She added that due to the immense success, people used to call them in different cities and gave them diamond jubilee awards. During those city tour sessions, she grew an equation with Rajesh Khanna.“

She said, “Toh unn dino jab hum milte the, Kaka aur meri dosti tab hui thi. Shooting set pe nahi hote the. Wo tabh akad ke chalte the, wo aadmi bohot proud hai. Ek baar maine kaha tha ek rehearsal ho jaata, toh wo (chilake) bole kitne rehearsals. Aur main newcomer thi aur mujhe bohot bura laga aur maine keh bhi diya ki aap aise kaise bol sakte hai kitne rehearsals main 10 rehearsals maagungi. Toh jhagda waha hua aur Sharmila ji tabhi bohot protect karti thi (bolke) ‘she is right’ wo hamesha meri taraf se bolti thi. Jab award functions hote the, tab bohot ache dost ban gaye the.“

Farida Jalal reveals being disgusted by his female fans

She said, “Main ladkiyaa dekhti thi na sab pagal hogaye the unke peeche. Ladkiya waha aake girti thi and I used to get very annoyed. Ladkiyaa aisi gir rahi hai padh rahi, koi bolta hai yaha sign karo, koi bolta hai waha sign karo and I’m disgusted. Toh who bolte the, ‘Dekha, star’. Main toh sochti thi bhi ki inko hua kya hai maine toh movie bhi Karli, gaana bhi gaa liya hai. Joh maine dekha, wo bolna padega ki vaakee iss tarah ki stardom aur deewanapan kisi hero ke liye nahi dekha.“

Watch the full interview here:

Also read: EXCLUSIVE: Farida Jalal reveals why she’s not working with Karan Johar in recent years; says, “Unki filmon mein mere liye role hota nahi hai”