Manisha Koirala Recalls Getting Scolded By A Toxic 90s Photographer For Refusing To Wear A Bikini

Manisha Koirala recently opened up about the challenges and hardships that female actors faced in Bollywood during the 90s.

New Delhi: Manisha Koirala recently opened up about the challenges and hardships that female actors faced in Bollywood during the 90s. Known for her candidness about the Hindi film industry, she recounted a troubling encounter with a male photographer in an interview with Filmfare. She shared that early in her career, a senior photographer criticized her for refusing to wear a bikini for a photoshoot.

Manisha Koirala shares her experience as an actor in the '90s

Manisha explained, “Very early on in my career, I was asked to take photographs with a very famous photographer. I went with my mom, and initially, he praised me, saying things like, ‘You are the next superstar.’ But then he brought out a two-piece bikini and asked me to wear it. I told him, ‘Sir, I wear this when I go to the beach or for a swim, but if this is the way I have to get into the movies, I don’t want it, and I am not wearing that.’”

She continued, “I told him either you shoot me fully clothed or not at all. I remember he gave me a long speech. He said, ‘Jo mitti pighalne se sharmati ho uske murti kaise banaye (How can I sculpt a statue from clay that refuses to melt)?’ I have not forgotten that. That’s how the mentality was for some people, though not everyone. Interestingly, the same person photographed me when I became a big celebrity and said, ‘Oh, I knew you were going to be a big star.’ This wasn’t to be mean to him, but it showed his level of conscience and exposure at the time.”

 

Manisha Koirala's acting career

Manisha began her acting career with the Nepali romantic-drama "Pheri Bhetaula" before making her Bollywood debut in Subhash Ghai's "Saudagar" (1991). She went on to star in several popular Indian films such as "Dhanwan" (1993), "1942: A Love Story" (1994), "Bombay" (1995), "Agni Sakshi" (1996), "Gupt: The Hidden Truth" (1997), "Dil Se.." (1998), and "Company" (2002). After a hiatus, she returned to the industry with the anthology film "Lust Stories" (2018) and portrayed Nargis Dutt in "Sanju" (2018).

Her most recent movie, "Shehzada" (2023), received praise, and she earned acclaim for her OTT debut in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar" (2024), where she played Mallikajaan in a pre-partition India story. The epic show also stars Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha, Sharmin Segal, Shekhar Suman, Adhyayan Suman, Fardeen Khan, and others.