Veteran actor Mandakini , who became one of the most popular faces of Hindi cinema in the 1980s, has recalled shooting the most-talked-about waterfall scene from Raj Kapoor’s Ram Teri Ganga Maili , saying she did not find anything vulgar or uncomfortable about the sequence.
Mandakini was just 16 when she stepped in front of the camera for the film, which was Raj Kapoor’s last directorial venture. In an exclusive interview with ANI, she revealed that she was just 16 when she started shooting for the film and did not fully understand how the scenes would be perceived later. The actor also revealed that after the success of Ram Teri Ganga Maili, some filmmakers wanted her to recreate the waterfall scene, but she refused, saying a successful film required a good story rather than just a particular scene.
Revisiting those moments, Mandakini opened up about the most-talked-about waterfall sequence in the song Tujhe Bulayen Yeh Meri Bahen, in which she appeared wearing a white saree. She also spoke about the much-debated breastfeeding sequence, saying the scenes were rooted in the film’s larger message of innocence and purity rather than the way they were later perceived. “Unka tarika aesa tha ki aap unse koi sawaal hi nahi karte the..itna pyar se itna gentle jaise aapka family member aapse karwa raha ho…(He had such a gentle and affectionate way of doing things that you would not even question him, as if a family member was guiding you through it.) I didn’t feel any vulgarity from anywhere. There was no disgusting feeling at all. The whole movie was that there is no purity. They wanted to make her (Ganga) impure. The actor also addressed the much-discussed breastfeeding scene from the film, clarifying that no actual breastfeeding occurred and that the scene was achieved through camera positioning. “No, there was no breastfeeding. They had picturised it so well. It’s very difficult for me to explain you now.
Speaking about the waterfall scene in the movie, Mandakini said Raj Kapoor had explained the sequence to her and rejected the perception that the scene was intended to be vulgar. She said the film’s central idea was purity and Ganga’s character. But they didn’t succeed,” Mandakini said. But if I explain you how it was done, you will understand,” she said.
