When Dharmendra returned to the screen after a short hiatus for Life In A… Metro, it wasn’t just his presence that surprised audiences — it was how deeply human his performance felt. The moment that has
stayed with viewers most vividly nearly 20 years on is a simple, tender kiss shared between his character and Shivani, played by Nafisa Ali.
After the veteran actor’s death, director Anurag Basu opened up about how the role was tailor-made for Dharmendra, in a chat with Rediff. “While I was writing Life In A… Metro, I wrote Dharamji’s name in the cast, next to Amol (his character in the film).” Basu wanted someone who could embody a man who once loved deeply, walked away to pursue dreams abroad, and then returned decades later to face the life he left behind. “I went for the first meeting praying he would say yes because I had no other actor in mind. I could only visualise him as this man who had once loved Shivani, but left her to pursue his dreams in the US, and now, 40 years later, he’s back, wanting to spends his last days with her.”
The idea to pair him with Nafisa Ali came from Basu’s wife, and it proved pivotal. “It was my wife Tani’s idea to cast Nafisa Ali opposite Dharamji. Being a big fan of her first film Junoon, I thought it would be great to bring the two heartthrobs together. Coincidentally, they were both MPs at the time.”
Basu admitted he was unsure how the intimate scene that followed would be received. “There is a kiss between them when they spend the night together, and frankly, I thought they would say no to it. But to my pleasant surprise, they didn’t make a fuss.” Looking back, he believes that the casting choices are part of why the story resonates so deeply. “In retrospect, I think the story worked because of the casting.”
Filming an important scene in public, however, brought its own challenges. Dharmendra’s sheer stardom made even public locations difficult to manage. When the crew secured permission to shoot at Mumbai’s Sion station, one of the busiest platforms in the city, they tried to keep him hidden until the last moment.
“We hid Dharamji in the vanity van till it was time for the shot. Then using umbrellas to shield his identity from the public eye, we brought him to the platform.” But secrecy didn’t last long. “While he was standing there, gazing at Shivani sitting on the opposite platform, a passerby recognised him and called out his name. Dharamji reacted by waving his hand in acknowledgement. After that, it was mayhem as crowds of fans streamed in.”
