Sholay's mausi insisted on finishing work despite getting paralytic attack that left half her body immobile, asked, ‘Who is Satyajit Ray' after being offered Shatranj Ke Khilari

Indian Express

17-05-2025

Sai Paranjpye is a trailblazer in every sense of the word. She broke into Bollywood as a director and screenwriter, which, like many other disciplines, was a male-dominated field. Among the many stars that she directed in her career, she highlighted one actor who often flies under the radar when people talk about impactful personalities on the screen. In a recent interview, Sai shared how actor Leela Mishra, who played the Hema Malini's mausi in Sholay, was one of a kind, and the most professional actor she had ever met.
While talking to Filmfare, Sai was sharing anecdotes from her 1983 movie Katha, which reminded her of Leela. Describing her as a precise and punctual actor, she said, 'She was professionalism personified; I had never met anyone like her. I hope I am not doing her wrong, but she wasn't educated, but she knew every aspect and nuance of filmmaking. While shooting Chashme Budoor, she improvised the scene where she is climbing up the stairs to get to the house of the boys.'
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The director gave a heart-wrenching example of Mishra's professionalism and shared that while shooting her last film, Leela suffered a paralytic attack but continued shooting until the scene was over. 'I heard a story that when she was doing her very last film, she got a paralytic attack while shooting. Half of her body became paralysed, and the shooting stopped. People got in a frenzy and were making plans to send her back to Mumbai, but she said, 'No, we still have one shot left.' She told the crew to shoot her from the side that was still mobile, and she finished that scene. She went to Mumbai after finishing that film, and she died soon after.'
Sai said that Leela was very particular about getting compensated for her work and that payment was high on her priority list. 'She was very particular about her payments, and she was always paid Rs 1000 per day, no matter the length of the role. When people offered her a role in Satyajit Ray's Shatranj Ke Khilari, she didn't even know who Ray was. All she enquired about was her payment and whether she will be paid her usual amount or not.'