Mandira Bedi says Saroj Khan told her she is like Sunny Deol during DDLJ shoot: You need to learn how to shake your hips

Mandira Bedi was terrified of a choreographed dance number in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and recounted what happened on the day of the shoot.

Mandira Bedi had a brief supporting role in Bollywood's cult classic Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. She played the role of Parmeet Sethi's docile sister, who had a crush on Shah Rukh Khan's character Raj. The actor recalled how she had a hard time shooting the song Mehendi Laga ke Rakhna from the film, as she appeared on the latest episode of Kareena Kapoor's show What Women Want. (Also read: Mandira Bedi 'put down her head and cried’ after ‘disrespect’ shown by cricket legends when she hosted 2003 World Cup)

Mandira Bedi in a still from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge.

What Mandira said

During the chat, Mandira said, “Unlike you, unlike how beautiful and graceful you are with songs… I started with a song! Mehendi Laga ke Rakhna! If I have nightmares as a grown woman, it is about two things: choreographed dance and maths exams! They both give me as much of a ‘wake up with a cold sweat’ kind of a feeling.”

‘It was actually quite terrifying’

She went on to add, "Saroj [Khan] Ji was the choreographer, and I remember her telling me, ‘You know something? You are like Sunny Deol, he shakes his shoulders! You shake your shoulders really well but as a woman and as a female actor you need to learn how to shake your hips!’ Which I could not do. It was actually quite terrifying and it still is. It is great to go to a party and then let off some steam and dance freestyle but when you are dancing to a beat, it is horrifying, at least for me!"

Mandira went on to add that whenever she sees the sequence on social media she stills feels so embarrassed at how bad she was at that time.

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge is a 1995 musical romance film that was written and directed by Aditya Chopra in his directorial debut. Starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in lead roles, the film is one of the most successful Bollywood films ever and ran in a theatre in Mumbai for over two decades.

The film follows two non-resident Indians (NRIs), Raj (Shah Rukh) and Simran (Kajol) who meet on a Europe trip and fall in love. Raj follows Simran all the way to Punjab, where her family is marrying her off to a family friend she has never met and tries to win them over.