'What completely stifled me was...': Dia Mirza was stopped from asking questions on Salman Khan's Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge

The 2002 Hindi action thriller Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge starred Salman Khan, Dia Mirza, and Sushmita Sen in the leading roles. In her recent interview, Dia has recalled that she saw "total disregard for a woman’s space" on the sets of film as she was stopped from asking any questions and was told, "just do whatever is being told to you."

Speaking to Zoom, the Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein actress said, "Mostly, things were shot based on the date availability of your male co-star and the location availability. That happens even now, but it is easier to navigate if you know the story. At that time, we didn’t know anything. During the shooting of Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge, the director was Pankaj Parashar. I was like, ‘Wow, Pankaj has done ChaalBaaz. He is amazing.’ Then there is also Salman Khan as the hero, and the film is backed by an established producer. They spent lavishly to make everything accessible for the story, but the script wasn’t available."

She further added, "There weren’t any workshops, no readings. Scenes were written in Bhojpuri. My character was from Rajasthan, but I was speaking Bhojpuri. My lines were given to me minutes before I went to shoot. My clothes were getting stitched on the fly and just arriving. They told me my character wears a chaniya choli, and I was like, 'Why?' They told me, 'You ask a lot of questions. Don't do that. Just do whatever is being told to you.' What completely stifled me was the total disregard for a woman’s space. For her questions and allow her the benefit of knowing better for her to do better."

Meanwhile, Dia Mirza's recent release has been the romantic drama Nadaaniyan, which premiered on Netflix last week. She and Jugal Hansraj play parents to Saif Ali Khan and ex-wife Amrita Singh's son Ibrahim Ali Khan, who makes his acting debut with the film. It features Boney Kapoor and late Sridevi's daughter Khushi Kapoor and her parents are played by Suniel Shetty and Mahima Chaudhry. Nadaaniyan has received extremely negative reviews and is being brutally trolled.