Farida Jalal reveals the hilarious backstory of how Akshay Kumar inspired her unique, incoherent dialogue delivery style in Welcome To The Jungle.
Veteran actor Farida Jalal is currently basking in the massive success of her latest role. The 77-year-old star plays the character of Badi Bi in Akshay Kumar starrer Welcome To The Jungle. In the film, her character speaks entirely incoherently, jabbering away in a chaotic manner. Despite the strange and unusual traits of the role, fans are absolutely loving it.
In an interview with Hindustan Times, the actress shared that compliments have been flowing in from all directions, calling it “God’s kind” and describing the love as the true reward for an actor.
Jalal further shared the hilarious and unexpected story behind how this character was fleshed. The idea for Badi Bi actually came from her co-star, Akshay Kumar.
The actress revealed that she was sitting with Akshay Kumar and the film’s director, Ahmed Khan, when Akshay received a phone call. The person on the other end of the line was talking incredibly fast and making no sense. After hanging up, Akshay turned to her with a brilliant idea. He suggested she mimic that exact style for her character in the movie. Since audiences have known Jalal for her perfect dialogue delivery and flawless diction for decades, he thought it would be a fun and surprising twist. The veteran actress agreed to give it a shot, and the gamble paid off beautifully.
The overwhelming success of the film has filled the legendary actress with deep gratitude for her long career. Jalal noted that her journey in cinema has been incredibly fulfilling ever since her debut in the iconic 1969 film Aradhana. Even today, people walk up to her, hold her hands, and share how her characters touched their lives.
The Kuch Kuch Hota Hai actress expressed that if God gave her a choice, she would choose the exact same life and acting career in her next births. For her, the endless love from the audience remains the ultimate reward.
Welcome To The Jungle is faring well at the box office. Within just its second weekend, the film has already crossed the Rs 100‑crore mark in India, showing that audiences are enjoying it and turning up in big numbers.
