Trigger warning: This article contains mention of death.
Shyam Benegal was an acclaimed Indian filmmaker who left for his heavenly abode on December 23, 2024. The renowned director contributed to the rich history of Indian cinema. But do you know that he was also jealous of his cousin Guru Dutt? In an interview, he admitted that he was jealous of Dutt because of his success.
A few months ago, Shyam Benegal was in an interview with Unfiltered by Samdish on YouTube. During the conversation, he mentioned feeling jealous of others during his younger days. Then Ankur director said that he was jealous of Guru Dutt because of his success.
“I mean, I didn’t admire him, I was jealous of him. I don’t so much admire him as envy him because of his success as a filmmaker. I used to criticize his work a lot. But the truth was that I was jealous of him,” the veteran filmmaker said, adding that Dutt had a very restless mind and would keep trying different things. However, the filmmaker admitted that the person he most admired was Satyajit Ray.
When asked if he feels such things even at this age, the Manthan producer said, “No, not anymore. But the truth is that I don’t feel any kind of jealousy.” When asked if he felt this way in his younger days, the filmmaker said firmly, “Of course”. On Monday, Benegal’s family confirmed the demise of the legendary director, who would have celebrated his 90th birthday on December 14.
Soon after the news of his demise made headlines, many B-town celebs took to social media to pay their last tribute to the Dadasaheb Phalke awardee. Paying tribute to the legend and his legacy, Akshay Kumar wrote, “Sad to know about the demise of Shyam Benegal ji. One of our country’s finest filmmakers, a legend indeed. Om Shanti.”
Kajol also expressed, “Deeply saddened by the demise of the great Shyam Benegal. His contribution to Indian cinema is immeasurable and his legacy lives on through his incredible work.”
Celebs like Karan Johar, Vicky Kaushal’s father Sham Kaushal, Manoj Bajpayee, Shekhar Kapur, Urmila Matondkar and Anurag Kashyap also condoled the director’s demise.
Also read: Shyam Benegal passes away: Akshay Kumar, Kajol, Karan Johar, Manoj Bajpayee and others mourn the demise of the legendary filmmaker
