Bollywood actress Shilpa Shirodkar was declared dead as part of a promotional campaign back in 1995, she said in a recent interview, opening up about how the fake news had impacted her family and friends, leaving everyone devastated.
The news of Shirodkar being shot dead made headlines across national media while she was filming for Raghuveer with actor Suniel Shetty in Kullu Manali, she recalled.
“My dad was trying to call the hotel because we didn’t have mobile phones at that time. I was shooting with Suniel Shetty there. Everyone who was watching the shoot there kept thinking if this is Shilpa or someone else because they knew the news,” the 51-year-old actress told Pinkvilla.
The fabricated story was part of a promotional strategy devised by producer Gulshan Kumar, she said.
“When I came back to the room, there were around 20-25 missed calls. My parents were worried, there was a headline in a newspaper that Shilpa Shirodkar was shot dead,” she added.
“When Gulshan ji told me it was for the film’s promotion, I was like ‘Okay’. Yes, it was a little too much. There was no PR activity or anything at that time. I was the last one to know that something like this was going to happen. No one used to take permission at that time,” Shilpa told Pinkvilla.
The actress said that she was not angry as the film performed well at the box office.
Shilpa Shirodkar, a former model, was a popular face in Hindi cinema between 1989 and 2000. Her films include Bhrashtachar (1989), Trinetra (1990), Benaam Badsha (1991), Tilak (1991), Apradhi (1992), Dil Hi to Hai (1992), Gopi Kishan (1993), Chhoti Bahoo (1994), Bewafa Sonam (1995) and Dand Nayak (1998).
Shilpa made her return to TV screens with Salman Khan-hosted reality show Bigg Boss 18 last year. She has been married to Aparesh Ranjit since 2000 and is a mother to a daughter. Her sister Namrata, a former actress, is married to actor Mahesh Babu.
Shilpa is expected to feature next in Jatadhara, an upcoming supernatural thriller co-starring Sudheer Babu and Sonakshi Sinha.