Urmila Matondkar on possible Rangeela remake: ‘Some of the remakes turn out to be great’

Urmila Matondkar, on being asked to comment on a possible Rangeela remake, said that some remakes are made quite well while others do not live up to expectations.

Urmila Matondkar, who became a household name with Ram Gopal Varma’s Rangeela, opened up about the film being potentially remade. She said that there is no ‘hard and fast rule’ whether a film should be made again, citing that some remakes are ‘great’ while others fail to impress.

Urmila Matondkar and Aamir Khan in Rangeela.

In Rangeela (1995), Urmila played Mili, a woman from a middle-class family, who aspires to be an actor. She is caught in a love triangle as her childhood friend Munna (Aamir Khan) and the lead actor of her film, Raj (Jackie Shroff), both fall for her. The film was not only a blockbuster but was lauded by critics as well.

When asked how she would feel if Rangeela were remade, Urmila told the Times of India, “I think it's a little unfair to take one rule for all. Some of the remakes turn out to be great and some don't hit the mark because you can't forget the original.”

“Those films were big because we had made such an impact on the audience's minds. It's very difficult for any actor or maker to recreate that every time. So, some of them really work and some of them don't; I don't think there's any hard and fast rule whether they should be made or not made. Even in Hollywood, it's the same thing,” she added.

Urmila began her career as a child artiste, with films such as Masoom and Karm. She made her debut as a lead star with Narasimha in 1991. She acted in films such as Judaai, Satya, Khoobsurat, Pyaar Tune Kya Kiya, Bhoot and Ek Hasina Thi.

After a hiatus of several years, Urmila made a comeback of sorts on the big screen with a special song in Abhinay Deo’s Blackmail, which released in 2018. She appeared in the song Bewafa Beauty.