Waheeda Rehman bowled over by Milkha biopic; to work again with Rakeysh Omprakash in Mirza Sahibaan

Ever since they worked together in Rang De Basanti and Delhi 6, and even before that, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra shared a truly wonderful rapport with Waheeda Rehman, so much so that he waited with bated breath for her to watch his new film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. Unfortunately for Rakeysh, Waheedaji was out of the country on a Scandinavian cruise with her pals Asha Parekh and Helen. The minute she landed in Mumbai she expressed a desire for a screening. Though Rakeysh was out of town he made all the arrangements for his most important guest to watch his film on Friday evening. And Waheedaji loved Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. Speaking exclusively on the subject to us she said, “Rakeysh has brought alive all the details from Milkha Singhji’s life. More than anything else, it is very inspiring for the young people in this country. The film should be made available to every youngster in the country. I haven’t been able to tell Rakesh how much I liked the film because he wasn’t there during the screening.” One is sure Rakesh would be happy to read this.a Rakeysh has been a diehard fan of Waheedaji from the time when he was just a student of cinema in Delhi. “I wanted to work with her in all my films. I first worked with her in Rang De Basanti. When I planned Delhi 6 Waheedaji had decided to take it easy as an actress. But I was adamant. I told her I’d erect the set in front of her house and shoot if she didn’t want to travel to location. To my good fortune she finally agreed to do Delhi 6. It was the happiest day of my life. Unfortunately there was no role for her in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag.” The heartening news for all Waheeda Rehman fans is that the timeless actress who has decided to quit acting has again persuaded Waheedaji to return to screen. This time Waheedaji will be playing Sonam Kapoor’s grandmother in Mirza Sahibaan. Interestingly Rakeysh feels there is an element of Waheedaji in Sonam’s personality. And Waheedaji has been extremely fond of Sonam ever since they worked together in Delhi 6.