‘Divya Bharti Refused To Be Chunky Panday’s Heroine, Threw Big…’: Pahlaj Nihalani’s Shocking Claim – News18

Pahlaj Nihalani has made a shocking revelation about late actress Divya Bharti in his recent interview. The filmmaker claimed that Divya apparently refused to do a movie with him when she discovered that she was paired opposite Chunky Panday in the film.

In an interview with Bollywood Thikana, Pahlaj said that when he had an encounter with Divya Bharti for the first time, he felt that she wasn’t in the best shape, and advised her to lose weight. He eventually roped her in for the film Shola Aur Shabnam opposite Govinda. The film was directed by David Dhawan.

“We hadn’t started shooting the film yet, and she approached me via a secretary. I saw her pictures and felt she looked a little plump. I told the secretary that she must lose weight before starting work. In the meantime, we started shooting,” Pahlaj told Bollywood Thikana in Hindi, according to Indian Express.com.

He further said that Divya joined the film when only around five days were left. “This was the first time I met her in person, and I liked what I saw. She immediately signed many films after that,” he said.

When asked if Divya Bharti was also supposed to do Aankhen with him, the producer recalled, “Yes, Divya, Pooja Bhatt and Juhi Chawla were supposed to do the film originally. I decided that Divya should be paired with Chunky and Ritu Shivpuri should be opposite Govinda. When David told her this, she was hassled. She called me up, and began threatening to do things. She threw a big tantrum, and summoned me. I went to meet her, and she said, ‘I’ve heard that I’m opposite Chunky?’ I said yes. She refused to do the film.”

Divya Bharti died in April 1993 after falling from the balcony of the fifth floor of her apartment in Mumbai. She was 19.