I was never such a big actor, didn’t have big producers, directors repeating me in movies : Shilpa Shirodkar

It's reasonable to say that actor Shilpa Shirodkar, who appeared in 1993's Aankhen in the second half, stole the stage with her performance. Shirodkar describes her experience working on the film as "wonderful" as it approaches its 30th anniversary. 

The movie changed the lives of many artists, including Shirodkar. “Every Friday gives birth to a new star. That Friday was a changing point in my career too. I signed many good films, worked with many lovely directors. After that movie, people actually said that ‘Nahi Nahi Shilpa acting kar sakti hain’. And of course, I started to charge more money,” she shares.

Her song Angna Mein Baba is still popular today, however, not many are aware that it was Juhi Chawla who was initially offered to play the part.

“I had no idea that Juhi was asked to do the film. But I am glad whoever was approached said no because I got a chance to do it,” says Shirodkar. While her character enters post interval, the actor says, it never bothered her. “Honestly, I was never such a big actor. I didn’t have big producers, directors or banners repeating me in movies. For me working for a producer like Pahlaj ji (Pahlaj Nihalani) was, top director like David Dhawan, and being opposite Govinda was an icing on the cake. Whether I came before the interval or after, it didn’t matter. I just had the hope ki aage jaake unke saath aur kaam milega,” Shirodkar elaborates.