Sharmaji Namkeen producer Honey Trehan remembers Rishi Kapoor

By: Mohnish Singh

Today marks the first death anniversary of iconic Bollywood star Rishi Kapoor. The entire industry and his fans remember the great actor who redefined romance on celluloid and stayed relevant for over four decades.

Before breathing his last on April 30, 2020, Kapoor was shooting for producer Honey Trehan’s film Sharmaji Namkeen with Juhi Chawla. Who knew it would turn out to be his last film? Trehan, who is producing Sharmaji Namkeen with Abhishek Chaubey and Excel Entertainment, informs that they have decided to retain the late actor’s portions in the film, while Paresh Rawal will be seen in the balanced portion.

Talking about the same, Trehan tells a publication, “How and why we are doing it, is for you to see in the film. Sharmaji Namkeen is a tribute to Rishiji. In 2020, we first lost Irrfan and then Rishiji, and it was more of a personal loss for me. I got to know Rishiji closely while working with him on Sharmaji Namkeen, while with Irrfan I had worked on 6 films. In fact, he was also supposed to be a part of my first directorial debut.”

Remembering the great actor, Honey Trehan adds, “Rishiji was always present in the moment. He would often give life a chance to react, rather than reacting to life, which I loved about him. I remember after he returned from New York, I once messaged him asking if I can come to meet him during the day time that week. He responded questioning, “Are you ok?”. I told him I was absolutely fine and just wanted to meet him to check on his health. He laughed and said, ‘Don’t do all of this, if you want to meet me, then come over for drinks.’ In fact, whether you meet him for the first time or the tenth, he would always make your first drink. That’s the kind of host he was.”

“Whenever someone would try to reach him for a photograph or an autograph - however busy he was - he would always make time for them. In fact, he would get up from his chair to greet the person - old or young - ask them their name, about their health, well-being and would shower them with lots of blessings. Rishiji was very rich with his thoughts and upbringing,” the filmmaker concludes.