Shekhar Suman fondly looked back on his first Bollywood debut Girish Karnad“The 1984 romantic drama Utsav, where he starred Rekha. Made up Shashi Kapoorthe film featured Rekha as nobleman Vasantasena and Shekhar as Charudatta, a poor man who is his favorite in Ujjain. Being a newbie, it was a big task for Shekhar to have intimate scenes with Rekha in his first film and he was a regular star. But Shekhar reveals how he made her feel comfortable. Recalling her experience, Shekhar said that Rekha was never a star despite being one of the biggest names in the industry. “He did that, from the beginning. When there’s a player who walks around with weapons and is like, ‘Look at me, I’m a big star,’ it’s a problem. They have a lot of people they care about and they expect you to just sit in the corner and see all the fame. But he was far from all that. He used to sit next to me and make me feel comfortable. So, even before I gave the shot, I was very relaxed,” recalled Shekhar in an interview with Screen. He also credited filmmaker Girish Karnad for helping him overcome the hurdle of sharing screen space with Rekha. “He told me, ‘Look, you’re just playing a character. Don’t take her as Rekha, but as Vasantasena, another character,'” said Shekhar. Talking about filming intimate scenes, he praised Rekha’s professionalism, adding, “Being a big star, she didn’t say, ‘Don’t touch me here’ or ‘I don’t want to do it again’.” He was very normal. “Shekhar also reminisced about working with Madhuri Dixit in Manav Hatya (1986), directed by Sudarshan Rattan. At that time, Madhuri had already made her debut with Abodh but was yet to achieve international fame, which came later with Tezaab and her hit song “Ek Do Teen.”Recalling how he approached the project, Shekhar said, “I remember working with Madhuri in my second film. The director called me and asked, ‘Would you work with a new girl?’ I said, ‘If Rekha can work with me, why can’t I work with a new girl?’”He also recalled meeting Madhuri before the shoot. “She lived near me in Andheri. I wanted to meet her, so we both went to her place on a motorbike. When I saw her, I thought, ‘Oh my god! Such a beautiful girl!’ It was a great experience,” he added.Looking back on his early career, Shekhar said that he never shied away from films where the female lead was in the lead role. Whether it was Utsav, Manav Hatya, or Jyoti SarupRehguzar along with Simple Kapadia, was happy to accept strong supporting roles. “I just took everything that came to me. Utsav was very exciting. To be chosen as a hero opposite Rekha! She was a big star and had a big role, but I was equally important and I realized it,” said Shekhar.He also spoke about Naache Mayuri (1986), inspired by the real-life story of Sudha Chandran, where he portrayed a flawed character. “It revolved around the protagonist losing his leg, but he still comes out as a winner. I played a hero, but he was a bad guy. When he loses his leg, they leave him, but he comes back after being famous,” recalled the artist.Sharing another memorable experience, Shekhar reflected on his role on Pati Parmeshwar in the spotlight Dimple Kapadiawhere his behavior ultimately requires forgiveness. He revealed that the audience was disgusted by his computer appearance, which he saw as a compliment to his performance. “Even Pati Parmeshwar, the film I did with Dimple Kapadia, I came back and asked for forgiveness. I remember my father watching it in a theater in Jaipur, where the audience said, ‘Maaro saale ko!’ He was very upset! He asked me, ‘Why would you do such a thing?’ I said, ‘But that’s the victory of character. I wanted people to hate me,’” Shekhar said.