Dalip Tahil recalls Baazigar’s Delhi shoot with Shah Rukh Khan

Dalip Tahil was waiting for a cab in a Delhi hotel lobby during Baazigar’s shoot when a couple asked which film was being made. Tahil said that when he mentioned Shah Rukh Khan, the man repeated the name as “Shrukh”.

Tahil, who played businessman Madan Chopra in the 1993 Abbas-Mustan film, recalled Khan as confident and energetic. He said that assurance helped the young actor stand out in the industry.

Khan had made his Hindi-film debut in Deewana the previous year. Baazigar, also starring Kajol and Shilpa Shetty, arrived in 1993 and became associated with his early career.

Tahil also remembered four days spent filming the movie’s car sequences. He said he and Khan drove around between takes, made small bets over who would finish ahead, and had to adjust their speeds for the camera. “They literally had to drag us out even for lunch,” Tahil said.