Ek mauka tha, maine dil khol ke perform kiya: Alia Bhatt reveals her first reaction when SLB narrated Gangubai

Alia Bhatt stunned her fans earlier this month when the makers of her upcoming film Gangubai Kathiawadi released a powerful trailer. The actress will play the titular role in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali-directed film, and the trailer has left us wanting more. 

In fact, Alia will be seen in a never-before-seen avatar in Gangubai Kathiawadi and her fans are eagerly awaiting the film's release. Interestingly, while the cast and crew are busy promoting the film, Alia Bhatt has revealed her initial reaction when Bhansali read her the script.

Alia recently admitted to Mid-Day that she had doubts about herself when Gangubai Kathiawadi came her way. The actress remarked that her initial emotion was terror, since she was not anticipating such a film. 

Alia was quoted saying, 

“I was scared. I was meant to do a love story with sir [Inshallah starring Salman Khan was called off]. Till that point, I hadn’t read the book [Mafia Queens of Mumbai] or known the story of Gangubai. I didn’t expect a film of this nature at all. So, when I heard the narration, I asked sir everything I feared: Do you think I can do this? Don’t you think I am a little young? He said, ‘I will make you do it.’ It was then I told myself that there should be no scope of doubt in my head when a film like this comes my way. I had self-doubt. So, I put in all the extra effort I could. But in this case, doubt was the key to knowledge, which made me explore the extremes of what I can do with this part.”

Alia also described Gangubai Kathiawadi as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. She added,

“Ek mauka tha, maine dil khol ke perform kiya. I have lived in Gangu’s world for two years. Even after we were done shooting, I would land up at sir’s office to watch the film’s visuals. I have never been this consumed by a character. SLB is the director I wanted to work with since I was nine."

Gangubai Kathiawadi is slated to release on February 25.