Manisha Koirala recalled how she had to work hard to meet Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s expectations when they collaborated on 1942: A Love Story.
Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s patriotic romantic drama 1942: A Love Story is considered amongst one of Manisha Koirala’s best works on screen. The film co-starring Anil Kapoor and Jackie Shroff was a turning point in her career after she made her Bollywood debut with Subhash Ghai’s Saudagar.
But things weren’t exactly a cakewalk for Manisha Koirala when it came to 1942: A Love Story! In a recent interview with ANI, the ‘Dil Se’ actress recalled how she had to slog hard for this Vidhu Vinod Chopra directorial.
Manisha said, “I had never done something like this. At that time, this project was massive. And I got scolded during my first screen test. Vinod had told me that you don’t know how to act. So I worked very hard and requested him to give me one more chance. So he did. I got it with a lot of hard work. And I had understood that during this entire thing, I could not slack. I have to figure it out and I have to do my best. I got to know about this during the screen test. We used to do a script reading at Vinod’s place.”
Recalling the pressure she felt about sharing screen space with two of the biggest stars of the time, Anil Kapoor and Jackie Shroff, the actress continued, “Vinod used to tell me, ‘Look, Manisha, both the superstars are in love with you in the film. So you better do everything to look beautiful. No matter what you do, I don’t know, but you have to look perfect. It shouldn’t feel like I’m lying as a director. The audience shouldn’t feel cheated.”
Manisha admitted that since she was new to the film industry, she didn’t understand much at the time. However, she was able to sail through those times with Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s support and guidance.
The actress said, “But somehow I got the gist, somehow I understood that this is like a serious business. And I had no idea. I was too young, and I was too naive. I was not from a film background. So I did not know much, but somehow I navigated and figured it out.”
Manisha further revealed that she had strict instructions from the film’s director Vidhu Vinod Chopra to wake up at 4am and sleep around 7-8 pm, and added, “The whole environment was created like that. He has supported me and guided me a lot.”
