Vidya Balan had shortest meeting for ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’: ‘Said yes instantly’

Vidya Balan, renowned for her portrayal of Manjulika in the 2007 blockbuster ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa,’ disclosed that accepting the role was the fastest decision she ever made for a film, without even reading the script.

She had watched the original Malayalam movie ‘Manichitrathazhu’ and when director Priyadarshan proposed her the role, she instantly accepted. She told PTI in an interview, “I remember I went to meet Priyan sir. He was shooting an ad with Sunny Deol in Mumbai, so he said, ‘Can you come to the set and meet me?’ I had watched the original Malayalam film ‘Manichitrathazhu’ as a kid, and I loved Shobana but I was also scared of her, and I’ve not watched the film ever again. But when he offered the film to me, I said, ‘Wow, are you offering me that film?’, and I said yes instantly. There was no script or anything because I had seen the original. It was probably the shortest meeting I had for a film and that was the shortest time I took to say yes to a film because I loved the original.”

She credits Priyadarshan for his exceptional direction, particularly for a scene where her character transitions into Manjulika and lifts a heavy bed. The upcoming ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3’, directed by Anees Bazmee and starring Kartik Aaryan and Triptii Dimri, is set to release in theatres on Diwali.

The Hindi version starred Akshay Kumar as a psychiatrist and Balan as Avni, a character with dissociative identity disorder. Shiney Ahuja played Balan’s husband in the film. Balan is now preparing to appear in the third part of this comedy horror series. The second film in the series was also directed by Bazmee and featured Aaryan, Kiara Advani, and Tabu. The film is produced by T-Series.