Satish Kaushik: Rishi Kapoor will be remembered for his greatness

Actor Satish Kaushik appreciates actor Paresh Rawal for completing late actor Rishi Kapoor’s last film

For Satish Kaushik, completing the shoot of Sharmaji Namkeen was an emotional experience, with actor Paresh Rawal coming on board to complete the film following the demise of actor Rishi Kapoor.

Actor Satish Kaushik along with actor Paresh Rawal shot for Sharmaji Namkeen in Delhi last week

Last week, Kaushik along with Rawal, who will portray the role that Kapoor was meant to play, came to Delhi to shoot the remaining portions of the film, which also stars Juhi Chawla.

“We kept on remembering Rishi Kapoor on the set. In fact, I told Paresh that it was great of him to take up the role in his absence,” Kaushik tells us, while lauding the concept of taking forward the story instead of scrapping it.

Kapoor, who passed away on April 30 last year after a long battle with leukemia, had shot a majority of the film, and the rest is being completed by Rawal.

“We couldn’t complete even one scene without remembering him. It is no more just a film, but a tribute to Rishi Kapoor,” says Kaushik, who will be seen in the role of a turbaned Sikh in the film.

Remembering moments from the shoot in Subhash Nagar, Delhi, the 64-year-old says, “We were being professional in front of the camera and staying true to our character. But once the camera stopped rolling, we used to start recalling his (Kapoor’s) personality, and how he embraced life to the fullest.”

As for Rawal stepping into Kapoor’s shoes, Kaushik feels the former has done a great job, and says he didn’t treat it like an acting assignment, but something which has a deeper, sentimental value.

“One always remembers the last film of an actor, and the fact that the person continued to work till the very end. Rishi Kapoor entered the acting field as a child, and he was wearing the same shoes when he died,” says the actor, who feels people will remember him for his “greatness as an actor” when they watch the film.

“Dekhte hue logon ko unki ek line hamesha yaad aayegi, woh hai, ‘Main shayar to nahin, magar aye haseen jabse dekha, maine tujhko mujhko shayari aa gayi’,” Kaushik concludes.