Pallavi Joshi Recalls Being Hit By Director At Age 4: 'How Could He Slap Me?'

News18

6 days ago

Pallavi Joshi recalls being slapped on set at age four during her debut film. The award-winning actor opens up about the incident and her remarkable career.
National Award-winning actor Pallavi Joshi may be celebrated today for her powerful performances, but her entry into the world of cinema came with an unexpectedly harsh lesson in showbiz. In a candid interview with Friday Talkies, Pallavi opened up about a shocking incident from her debut film Naag Mere Saathi (1973), revealing that she was slapped by the film's director on set when she couldn't deliver an emotional scene.
Recounting the moment with startling clarity, Pallavi, who was just four years old at the time, said that director Shantilal Joshi—a friend of her father's—cast her after noticing her interest in acting. She played the younger version of Sarika in the film, which also starred Sachin.
During one particular song sequence, the young Pallavi was asked to cry while performing a puja to the Nag Devta. But instead of weeping, she found the entire scene hilarious.
'They told me to cry, but I just kept laughing," she shared. 'After multiple failed takes, Shantilal uncle asked my father to slap me. My father refused, of course. He just pretended to scold me from behind the camera. I could tell he wasn't serious, and that made me laugh even more."
But what followed next left a permanent impression on her young mind.
'Frustrated, Shantilal uncle walked up and slapped me while the camera was rolling. I was stunned. I had never been hit before. I felt humiliated in front of the whole unit. I broke into uncontrollable sobs. After the shot, I got up and shouted, 'I don't want to shoot for this film!'"
Her father, equally taken aback, confronted the director, asking, 'How could you slap my daughter?"
The shoot was called off, and although days passed in silence, the director eventually resumed filming once little Pallavi had calmed down. The experience, though bruising, didn't deter her from continuing in the industry.
Pallavi went on to act in several acclaimed films as a child, including Aadmi Sadak Ka, Badla, and Dada, where her portrayal of a blind child earned special praise. Her career flourished through the 1990s in both parallel and commercial cinema, with standout performances in Rukmavati Ki Haveli, Trishagni, and Saudagar.
In 1992, she earned her first National Award for Woh Chokri, and later portrayed Kasturba Gandhi in Shyam Benegal's The Making of the Mahatma. After a brief hiatus, she returned to cinema with Renuka Shahane's Rita in 2009.
Most recently seen in Tanvi The Great, Pallavi is now gearing up for the release of The Bengal Files, the next chapter in husband Vivek Agnihotri's politically charged Files trilogy. Also starring Mithun Chakraborty, Anupam Kher, and Darshan Kumar, the film is slated for release on September 5.
First Published:
August 02, 2025, 19:57 IST
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