Veteran screenwriter Javed Akhtar recently opened up about a scene in Hema Malini and Dharmendra’s 1972 film Seeta Aur Geeta he wouldn’t write today. Akhtar said he regrets writing the scene and added that he is guilty.
During an interaction with Mojo Story, Akhtar opened up about the said scene and explained why he wouldn’t write it today.
“In Seeta Aur Geeta, Geeta (Hema Malini) is a very strong and aggressive girl. Then she’s replaced by Seeta (also played by Hema). Dharmendra comes to their house and starts eating. And he says, ‘Mausi, kya khana banaya hai aapne.’ Wo bolti hai, ‘Ye maine nahi banaya hai, ye toh Geeta ne banaya hai (You’ve made such great food. She says, ‘I haven’t made it, Geeta has’),” Akhtar said.
Further explaining how Dharmendra’s character, Raka, reacts to this, the screenwriter stated, “So, he looks at Geeta with new respect. She’s his business partner. She performs on the streets with him. He didn’t have any respect for her till then. But when she made good food, then he respected her.”
52 years later, Akhtar said he realised he wouldn’t have written this scene today. “I wrote that scene; I plead guilty. But I will not write this scene today,” he said.
Seeta Aur Geeta was directed by Ramesh Sippy. It starred Hema in a double role, supported by Dharmendra and Sanjeev Kumar. The film tells the story of twin sisters, Seeta and Geeta, who are separated at birth and raised in contrasting environments. Seeta, meek and oppressed, lives with her cruel aunt, while Geeta grows up as a bold and free-spirited street performer. Their lives intertwine when fate swaps their places, leading to comic chaos and drama.
