Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s niece Sharmin Segal made her big Bollywood debut in Malaal opposite Jaaved Jaaferi’s son Meezaan today. In an interview with a leading daily, the actress opened up about her relationship with her ace filmmaker uncle and the pressure of living up to her famous lineage.
Talking about the high expectations from her given her famous family, Sharmin said, “Of course, there's pressure. I think more than anything else I have the pressure to keep up the tag of being Sanjay Leela Bhansali's niece. I have to make him proud too. My only difficulty is to prove myself."
Sharmin said that she learned about the filmmaking process from Bhansali when she worked as an assistant director on Bajirao Mastani. She said, “As a four-year-old, I would go on Sanjay sir's set and say 'I want to sit on Aishwarya Rai's lap today.' After assisting him on Bajirao Mastani, I understood what a great man he is, what his contribution is to Hindi cinema. As an assistant, you understand the teamwork that goes behind making an actor look the way they look.”
Sharmin also shared the unique bond that she shares with Bhansali and the fact that although he is her maternal uncle she calls him ‘Sir’. Explaining about on why she addresses him as ‘Sir’, Sharmin said, “I call him Sanjay sir only because I think he deserves that respect. For me, he became a 'sir' when I watched Devdas at the age of 17. I thought to myself 'What kind of a man is he?' He is so brilliant. I feel privileged that I am related to him and he has given me a chance to prove my capabilities to the world.”
(Source: Indian Express)
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