KWK 8: Sharmila Tagore Talks About Her Famous Bikini Shoot From The 60s

Sharmila Tagore, the famous Bollywood Diva was always ahead of her time and this is what made her stand out. She has never regretted her decisions and always felt proud to reveal her thoughts. Also, she recently talked about her bold bikini shoot which garnered a lot of attention and intense criticism during her time.

Saif and Sharmila in KWK8

In the latest episode of KWK, the guests were the mother-son duo, Saif Ali Khan and Sharmila Tagore. They have attracted a lot of views and keen eyes and have been a center of discussion lately. Sharmila Tagore was probably the first actress who appeared in a Filmfare magazine in a bikini in 1966. Also, in the movie An Evening in Paris, released in 1967, Sharmila Tagore has seen some sequences and shots in a swimming suit. And this during her time was considered to be a very bold move.

When she was asked how she felt at that time, she replied, “The photographer was slightly worried. I just thought I looked very nice. It hurt me later because everybody interpreted it in such a way that I was upwardly mobile; I was trying to catch eyeballs. I didn’t feel like that. When it came out in Filmfare, I was in London and unaware till Shakti (Samanta) ji called me and said, ‘Will you come back quickly? Terrible things are happening here.’”

She also talked about the intensity of criticism she faced, as she added that “Questions were asked in the parliament.” And went further by saying, “I used to live alone, and I was very upset with all this. It was completely the opposite of what I thought would happen. So I sent a Telegram to Tiger, and he said, “I’m sure you’re looking very nice. So that was my support.”

Saif was curious about what were the questions that were raised in parliament, to which she replied “It was not pleasant for me. After that, I was very careful, and I chose Aradhana.” Aradhana was an Indian Hindi love drama film that was released in 1969. The movie also won the Best Film award at the 17th Filmfare Awards.