EXCLUSIVE: Director Sharan Sharma reveals Mr & Mrs Mahi could’ve been shelved post Janhvi Kapoor suffering shoulder injuries, states, “Doctor said one more injury and film band karlo”

Sharan Sharma’s Mr & Mrs Mahi released yesterday (May 31) and the audiences are loving it. While fans share positive remarks about the Janhvi Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao starrer on social media, Bollywood Bubble sat down for an in-depth chat with the makers. During the exclusive chat, Sharan got candid about many things, including Janhvi’s injuries, the fate of the sports drama hanging by a thread post that and Kapoor’s dedication to make the film a success. Read on to know what he said.

Sharan on Jahvi continuing playing cricket after injuries

During our exclusive off-camera chat, we asked Sharan Sharma about Janhvi continuing to play cricket despite her injuries. For the unversed, Janhvi suffered two shoulder dislocations during the filming of the sports drama. She was told she shouldn’t be playing the game all her life as she was very susceptible to dislocations. Talking about the actress giving her 100% to the film and whether they went against medical advice, the director said, “No (we didn’t go against the doctor). It was very tough.”

He continued, “She got two injuries – her first was the left shoulder, and the second was her right shoulder. The doctor made it very clear that she has a condition called MDI – multi-directional instability. It’s very good for dancers but not for cricketers. Her ligaments and muscles were not strong enough. They made it very clear, one more injury and she would have to do surgery and film band karlo (end the film). It was a lot at stake.”

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A post shared by Sharan Sharma (@sharanssharma)

Janhvi’s prep period extending 

Talking about why her training period was extended, Sharan Sharma said, “We had said 4 months of intense training where she was battling like 500 balls/day – our coaches felt that was good enough, but now she could bat only 60 balls/day. So the workload had to be managed and spread across a long period. When we were shooting, they made it clear she could bat only 60 balls/day. Say 1 shot ke liye you do three takes, now you shoot that from so many different angles, so we were under pressure. Aur usme mera keeda ki middle nahi hua (and in that me being particular about the ball hitting the centre of the bat).”

He added, “Her physio was kinda counting the balls. They would count and be like, ‘Guys, we are on 49, so pace yourself’. Or like ‘We’ve reached 63.’ There were days when she also pushed herself beyond that barrier because she knew how much was at stake. But there were a lot of good wishes of the universe that guided us home.

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Mr & Mrs Mahi could have been shelved or digitally edited? 

Honestly, there were several moments in the last 2 years of her training where I felt nahi hoga (it’s not possible). Like yaar, it’s too hard. At one point we thought let’s research face replacement. Then we realized firstly the technology is too expensive and secondly ki naho hoga. We had to do this.”

When asked if the thought of replacing Janhvi Kapoor as Mahima ever crossed his mind, the director replied, “No. That’s not a possibility. She’s given her soul to it, she’s got these injuries (so replacing her) is not the right thing to do.” He continued, “What Janhvi brings to the table for me is so valuable. It’s my responsibility to give her the best environment and time for her rehab.” He added that the makers of Mr & Mrs Mahi even sent physiotherapists with her when she was shooting Bawaal to make sure she was recovering well. 

In case you missed it, here’s a glimpse of Janhvi Kapoor’s intense training for Mr & Mrs Mahi

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A post shared by Sharan Sharma (@sharanssharma)

Have you watched Janhvi Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao’s Mr & Mrs Mahi? Lt us know what you think of it in the comments.

Also Read: EXCLUSIVE: Janhvi Kapoor recalls being called ‘worst candidate’ to play cricket after injury in Mr & Mrs Mahi; says “Had to tape up my shoulders to keep it in place”