Amol Palekar recalls being ‘ordered’ to slap Smita Patil without her consent during Bhumika: ‘She hugged me, cried'

Amol Palekar talked about slapping Smita Patil without her consent, after Shyam Benegal thought ‘he wasn’t violent enough' while filming Bhumika.

Amol Palekar recently attended the Jaipur Literature Festival 2025, where he recalled an incident of slapping his co-star Smita Patil without her consent during the filming of Shyam Benegal's film Bhumika. The actor revealed that he apologised to Smita after the scene.

Amol Palekar recalls slapping Smita Patil without her consent during Bhumika.

Amol Palekar on slapping Smita Patil

When asked whether his theatre background influenced the moment when he slapped Smita in the take, Amol partially agreed and explained that he does not believe in performing unrehearsed scenes and prefers to communicate everything with his co-star.

He then recounted, "During the making of Bhumika, we were shooting a crucial scene, but Shyam was not satisfied with the result. He felt I was not being violent enough. Just before the take, he called me aside and said, ‘Amol, slap her.’ I agreed but insisted on rehearsing it with Smita. However, Shyam refused. He asked me to slap her without informing her. I immediately refused, but then he insisted, saying it was an order."

He further recalled how he and Smita cried afterwards and that he apologised for slapping her, saying, "The whole shooting process began. I was confused and scared—I didn’t know whether I should slap Smita without telling her, as it was against my nature. Smita started performing brilliantly, as she always did, and at one point, I held her hand and gave her a tight slap. The expression on her face was one of disbelief. She couldn’t believe I would do something like that. Along with disbelief, there was also anger and humiliation on her face, but since we were both professional actors, we continued performing, as Shyam had not yet called ‘Cut!’ As soon as the shot was over, I went to her and apologised. I started crying. I explained why I had done it, and she hugged me and cried too."

About Bhumika

Bhumika is a 1977 Indian film directed by Shyam Benegal. The film stars Smita Patil, Amol Palekar, Anant Nag, Naseeruddin Shah, and Amrish Puri. It is based on the Marathi-language memoir Sangtye Aika by the renowned 1940s Marathi stage and screen actress Hansa Wadkar, who led a flamboyant and unconventional life. The film explores an individual's search for identity and self-fulfilment.

Amol Palekar recent work

Amol Palekar is an Indian actor best known for his roles in Bollywood and Marathi films during the 1970s and 1980s. He was last seen in the film Gulmohar, which premiered on Disney+ Hotstar. The film also stars Sharmila Tagore, Manoj Bajpayee, Simran, and Suraj Sharma in key roles.