Actor Sharmin Segal, who portrayed the role of Alamzeb in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi, compared her character to the late legendary actor Meena Kumari’s role in the 1972 film Pakeezah. However, Kumari’s stepson Tajdar Amrohi disagrees with the comparison, asserting that Heeramandi and Pakeezah are not similar in any manner, and there cannot be another Meena Kumari.
While speaking to Zoom, Tajdar addressed Sharmin’s statement that she took inspiration from Meena Kumari’s “nothingness” in Pakeezah to portray the role of Alamzeb in Heeramandi. He said, “I don’t know Sharmin. But no, I can’t relate to her statement on nothingness.”
Tajdar also commented on Pakeezah and Heeramandi being starkly different from one another. While Heeramandi is based on the life of courtesans of the Heera Mandi district in Lahore, Kamal Amrohi’s Pakeezah tells the story of the courtesans of Lucknow. Tajdar said, “Zameen aasman ka farak hai between ‘Heeramandi’ and ‘Pakeezah’ (There is a difference of earth and sky between them). Don’t compare the two. Nobody can make Pakeezah again. Neither Meena Kumari nor Kamal Amrohi can ever be born again.”
In an interview with ETimes, Sharmin claimed she ‘tried’ watching Pakeezah ’15-16 times’ to prepare for the role of Alamzeb. “I tried to bring Meena Kumari’s nothingness from ‘Pakeezah’ into my character in ‘Heeramandi,'” she said.
However, her performance didn’t impress the viewers, and she was trolled for “expressionless” acting. Her co-actors Aditi Rao Hydari, Farida Jalal, Richa Chadha, and others came out in her support. Sharmin also addressed the trolls and said she is open to constructive criticism from the audience.
Sharmin told News18, “The audience is the king at the end of the day. And as a creative person, it’s very important to acknowledge that. They have a right to their opinion – positive or negative. That’s one thing that gives me perspective and allows me to be okay.”
Heeramandi is streaming on Netflix.
Source Agencies
