Chaalbaaz director alleges Ram Gopal Varma forced Sridevi to lose weight: 'She fainted, hit her head, and lost a tooth'

Time of India

7 days ago

Director Pankaj Parashar revealed that Sridevi's health suffered due to industry pressure to lose weight. Ram Gopal Varma's insistence on extreme dieting for 'Kshana Kshanam' led to a health scare during 'Meri Biwi Ka Jawab Nahin,' causing her to faint and halt production. Akshay Kumar confirmed the film's incomplete status.
Behind the glamour and grace of
Sridevi
's iconic career lies a troubling pattern of pressure and perfection. In a recent interview, Chaalbaaz director Pankaj Parashar opened up about the damaging impact of industry expectations on the late actor, revealing a disturbing incident where
Ram Gopal Varma
's repeated insistence on weight loss led to a serious health scare.
Ram Gopal Varma's Role in a Delayed Film
In a chat with Friday Talkies, the director addressed the long-delayed release of his incomplete film Meri Biwi Ka Jawab Nahin, starring Sridevi and
Akshay Kumar
. He blamed Ram Gopal Varma for the setback, claiming Varma pushed Sridevi to lose weight during their work on the 1991 Telugu film Kshana Kshanam, prompting her to go on a crash diet that impacted her health and delayed other projects.
A Crash Diet That Ended in a Health Crisis
Speaking about the film, Pankaj further revealed that everything was on track until Ram Gopal Varma intervened.
He claimed Varma constantly urged Sridevi to lose weight, leading her to follow a crash diet. She cut out salt, which caused her blood pressure to drop. Sridevi fainted, hit a table, remained unconscious for 20 minutes, and even lost a tooth—ultimately causing the entire shoot schedule to be scrapped.
He also shared that after Sridevi injured her face, she had to take a break from filming, which led to the schedule being abandoned midway.
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He added that the situation spiraled—'the movie went off track, the financer backed out, the producer passed away'—and eventually, he had no choice but to leave the project.
Akshay Kumar Recalls the Unfinished Film
A few years ago on
Koffee with Karan
, Akshay Kumar revealed that Meri Biwi Ka Jawab Nahin was never fully completed. Despite this, an unfinished version was released in 2004. He recalled that while the characters declared they would seek revenge, the actual climax was never shot.
Instead, the film abruptly ended with on-screen text stating they eventually took their revenge.
Boney Kapoor
on Sridevi's Struggles With Dieting
In an earlier conversation with The New Indian, Sridevi's husband and producer Boney Kapoor revealed that she was on a diet when she passed away in 2018. He shared that she often starved herself to maintain her on-screen appearance and had experienced blackouts due to low blood pressure. Doctors had warned her about the issue multiple times. Boney also recalled a moment shared by actor Nagarjuna, who visited to offer condolences.
Nagarjuna mentioned that during one of Sridevi's films, she was on a crash diet, fainted in the bathroom, and broke her tooth—echoing earlier incidents linked to extreme dieting.