Nitanshi Goel’s performance in Laapataa Ladies has hit all the right notes with movie buffs. In the Kiran Rao directorial, Nitanshi portrayed the role of Phool Kumari, a young bride who gets lost during a train journey. Recently, the actress opened up about her first-ever meeting with megastar Amitabh Bachchan. During her appearance on Ranveer Allahbadia‘s podcast, Nitanshi shared, “Mai jab Mumbai aai thi to mera pehla ad Amitabh Bachchan sir ke saath tha – a very, very big superstar. And me being a very big fangirl, I was like, ‘yeah. Act karne ko mil raha hai Amitabh sir ke saath karne ko mil ra hai. Oh my god.’ [When I came to Mumbai, my first ad was with Mr. Amitabh Bachchan, a very, very big superstar. And me being a huge fangirl, I was like, ‘Yeah. I get to act, and I get to act with Amitabh sir. Oh my god.’]”
Nitanshi Goel continued, “Aur bahut sare bache the, mai bhi unme se ek thi aur sir (Amitabh Bachchan) aaye. Aur luckily, there was a scene jisme sirf main aur Amitabh Bachchan sir hone wale the. I was like, ‘Yes. Iski saari lines mai yaad karke rakhungi.’ Baar-baar pane mumma ko rehearse karke dikha ri thi ki yeh aise-aise krungi mai. [And there were many kids, and I was one of them. Then sir arrived. Luckily, there was a scene where it was just going to be me and Amitabh Bachchan sir. I was like, ‘Yes. I will memorise all my lines for this.’ I kept rehearsing it in front of my mom, showing her how I would do it.]
Recounting how the megastar himself initiated the conversation, Nitanshi Goel said, “He was so sweet. Vo khud aaye mere paas ki, ‘Hum rehearsals kare beta.’ Maine kaha, ‘Hanji, hanji.’ Aur vo apni knees pe baith gaye. Mai chair pe baithi hui thi, aur voi apni knees pe, meri height se apni height milane le liye baith gaye. He did the whole rehearsal with me and everything. And he was like, ‘Yeh ladki badi kamaal ki hai. Cute-cute expressions deti hai.’ To mai to itne me hi khush ho gayi ki Amitabh Bachchan sir ko meri acting achi lagi. [He came to me himself and said, ‘Let’s rehearse, dear.’ I said, ‘Yes, yes.’ And he got down on his knees. I was sitting on a chair, and he knelt down to match his height with mine. He did the whole rehearsal with me and everything. And he was like, ‘This girl is amazing. She gives such cute expressions.’ I was so happy just because Amitabh Bachchan sir liked my acting.] This is great.”
Nitanshi Goel also mentioned how Amitabh Bachchan spared time to click a selfie with each kid. She expressed “Aur uske baad ja pack up hua. Apke kya expect krte hai ek itne bade celebrity se, jinke saath har insaan photo khichana chahta hai, almost everyone. Aur shayad se vo bhi thak gaye honge shoot karne ke baad. Vo itne busy rahe honge. Unhone kya kiya, unhone apne sare bodyguards ko bola ki, ‘Ek main ruk jaiye. Mai saare bacho ko ek-ek selfie to dekar jaunga.’ Vo neeche baith gaye aur hum saare bache unke saath aise gale lage hai jaise vo hamare dada ji ho, hamare nana ji ho. Hamare hi family member ho. Aur humne unse full gale milke unke saath selfie li hai. [When the shoot wrapped up, what do you expect from such a big celebrity, with whom everyone wants to take a photo, almost everyone? And maybe he was tired after the shoot. He must have been so busy. What did he do? He told all his bodyguards to wait and said, ‘I will stay back. I will give each child a selfie before I leave.’ He sat down, and all of us kids hugged him as if he were our grandfather, as if he were a member of our family. And we took a full hug and a selfie with him.]”
In addition to Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta and Sparsh Shrivastav are also seen in Laapataa Ladies. The movie is currently available for streaming on Netflix. The film has been jointly backed by Jio Studios, Aamir Khan Productions, and Kindling Pictures.
