Jim Sarbh accidentally hit Sonam Kapoor on Neerja set. Then this happened
Actor Jim Sarbh has recalled accidentally hitting Sonam Kapoor in the mouth with a gun on the first day of shooting for his debut film Neerja, saying he was relieved he was not fired from the project. Looking back at the Ram Madhvani-directed film, Sarbh also spoke about his early experience of working on a film set and his discomfort with hierarchy in the industry.
Neerja, released in 2016, starred Sonam Kapoor as Neerja Bhanot, while Sarbh played one of the terrorists involved in the plane hijack. As he revisited the film in a conversation with Hollywood Reporter India, Sarbh spoke about the on-set accident, and went on to discuss the working culture he encountered in films, as well as the way he says he was treated in his early years in the industry.
Recalling his first day of shooting for Neerja, Sarbh said, “On my first day on shoot, an accident happened. I accidentally hit Sonam Kapoor in the mouth with the gun. I told myself, ‘Oh my God, what have I done? ‘ I will never forget that intensity and panic. However, she was such a sport about it, and everyone else was enjoying what else I was doing, luckily I didn’t get fired off my first film; otherwise, we wouldn’t be here.”
Sarbh also spoke about being introduced to hierarchy on film sets after coming from theatre. He said, “That time, I was getting introduced to film hierarchy, coming from the theater space that was also very new and different. I don’t think I am still adjusted to it. All my experiences up until that time were that we were all working on a project together. I didn’t get it. Not that; that project was like that.”
He continued, “There are these very distinct hierarchies, which I think the more we can dissolve them, the better the future of filmmaking will be. When everyone has been picked because of what they do and for their contribution to a particular project, the more there will be a mutual feeling of respect amongst everybody. Then you will want to do your job the best. In the structure of the hierarchy, sometimes, people feel undervalued, and it creates a situation where mediocrity can also thrive. It’s complicated.” He also said his latest show, Titan, is a project where this system did not exist.What he said earlier about his early years
In July, while speaking on The Streaming Show podcast, Sarbh had also spoken about how he was treated in his initial days in the film industry. He said, “I was young, I was pretty hot-headed. I got angry. I couldn’t understand how people could be like this. I just couldn’t understand it. I came from some amount of working in the US, and then from a we’re-all-equal theatre space I just couldn’t I just could not believe it. It made me very angry. Angry and upset and hurt and disappointed, I just lie more. No one cares about your truth.”
He further added, “But if I had to go back, I’d say, listen, you weren’t able to say what you wanted to say more kindly back then; just lie. Lie. Forget it. Go into a room, scream into a pillow, come outside and say, ‘I love that you somehow can’t afford a car to take us back home even though you’re paying us nothing at all, and the main actor drove up like this I love that!’ I’m going to take the train!’ Lie, lie a lot. Tell your close friends the pain. No one else cares; they don’t care. ”
Sarbh made his acting debut with Neerja in 2016 and later appeared in films such as Death In The Gunj, Padmaavat, Gangubai Kathiawadi, Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway and Sanju. In the OTT space, he has been seen in shows including Made In Heaven, Rocket Boys, Four More Shots and Made In India: The Titan Story.- EndsALSO READ | Jim Sarbh recalls being mesmerised by Naseeruddin Shah at 18: This is incredible
