Veteran actor Amol PalekarHaving worked with some veteran film directors like Shyam Benegal, Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Basu Chatterjee, Shyam recently recalled a time when Shyam asked him to slap actress Smita Patil during a scene without her knowledge. Amol said that he was completely against the idea of hitting without asking, but Shyam was adamant. The incident with Palekar till today has highlighted the importance of consensus and dialogue between actors during filming.
Palekar narrated the incident on the sets of the role and shared with TheLlantop, “Shyam Benegal told me that I slapped him (Smita Patil) without telling him. So I said, ‘No, I can’t do that.’ I refused to do anything that wasn’t rehearsed. Your co-star should know what you are going to do. According to me, doing anything without their knowledge is wrong, so I don’t do it. ‘How can I raise my hands on a woman?’ I was devastated. I have never done this in my life and I never will. “
Despite his reservations, Palekar was eventually persuaded to go along with the scene. However, the experience left a lasting impression on her and her co-star Smita Patil. Palekar recalls, “The shot started and Smita started acting, so at one point I grabbed her hand and slapped her. As Smita’s speech changed, she couldn’t believe that I just slapped her, she was shocked. She felt humiliated and angry… The camera kept rolling, not cutting. The camera was capturing her every expression. Not just the camera, I was watching him too, I forgot everything else, I didn’t know how to react. I was very embarrassed to see the expression on his face.”
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The incident eventually brought Palekar and Patil closer to each other, as they both broke down in tears after the scene was over. Palekar recalled, “Shyam then said ‘cut’ and I went to Smita first and hugged her and apologized. I said, ‘I’m so sorry Smita’ and we both broke down, cried a lot. That’s what happened to us during Bhumika.”
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