Divya Dutta recounts her first meeting with Hrishikesh Mukherjee: 'The best 10 minutes'

Mumbai, Nov 6 (IANS) Actress Divya Dutta, who is known for films like ‘Badlapur’, ‘Bhaag Milkha Bhaag’, ‘Veer-Zaara’ and others, recollected her experience of meeting the legendary filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee during the early phase of her career.

Hrishikesh Mukherjee is known for films like ‘Gol Maal’, ‘Chupke Chupke’ and ‘Anand’, and is considered one of the masters in Indian cinema.

Walking down the memory lane, the actress recalled interacting with the legend as she said: “I had just come to the industry and Hrishikesh Mukherjee is my favourite, most favourite filmmaker. Although I didn't have a mobile phone at the time, he called me and said, ‘Mai Hrishikesh Mukherjee bol raha hoon Divya Dutta se baat ho sakti hai’. I thought it was a crank call because none of these legends had ever called me before. He called and I wasn't sure how to respond. I said, ‘Aap Hrishikesh Mukherjee bol rahe hain?’. He said, ‘Haan aap Divya bol rahi hain?’ It was really awkward and funny, and I'm sure he understood because I couldn't believe what he was saying.”

She further mentioned on ‘Cyrus Says’ of IVM Podcasts hosted by Cyrus Broacha: “I thought, ‘Let me get my thoughts right’. I said, ‘Achha aap kaha rehte hain? Mai aati hoon apko milne’. He said, ‘Haan beta zaroor aao. Come to Bandra’. He gave me the address. I thought, ‘This looks like a legitimate address, so it can't be wrong’. So I went the next day. I was very prepared to meet a stranger at his home. When I reached there, I entered the house and saw him. He was bedridden at the time. I sat with him and he said, ‘Agar tum 20 saal pehle aati na to hum bohot kaam karte’. He was just saying that because of the way we grew up watching his films. Those 10-15 minutes that I spent with him were the best.”