Actress Sharmin Segal, who plays Alamzeb in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi, has compared her character to late veteran actress Meena Kumari’s role in the 1972 film Pakeezah. However, Kumari’s stepson Tajdar Amrohi disagrees with the comparison and says that Heeramandi and Pakeezah are in no way similar and there can be no other Meena Kumari.

while talking ZoomTajdar commented on Sharmin’s statement that she drew inspiration from Meena Kumari’s “nothingness” in Pakeezah to play Alamzeb in Hiramandi. He said, “I don’t know Sharmin. But no, I can’t relate to her statement about nothingness.”

Tajdar also said that Pakeezah and Heeramandi are completely different from each other. While ‘Heeramandi’ is based on the lives of prostitutes of Lahore’s Heera Mandi district, Kamal Amrohi’s ‘Pakeezah’ tells the story of prostitutes of Lucknow. Tajdar said, There is a vast difference between ‘Heeramandi’ and ‘Pakeeza’ “There is a huge difference between the two. Don’t compare the two. No one can make Pakeezah again. Neither Meena Kumari nor Kamal Amrohi can be born again.”

In an interview etimesSharmin claimed that she tried to watch Pakeezah 15-16 times to prepare for the role of Alamzeb. She said, “I tried to bring the emptiness of Meena Kumari in ‘Pakeezah’ into my character in ‘Heeramandi’.”

However, her performance did not impress the audience and she was trolled for her “expressionless” acting. Her co-stars Aditi Rao Hydari, Farida Jalal, Richa Chadha and others came out in her support. Sharmin also addressed the trolls and said that she is ready for constructive criticism from the audience.

Sharmin said News18“At the end of the day, the audience is king. And as a creative person, it’s so important to acknowledge that. They have a right to their opinion – whether it’s positive or negative. That’s something that gives me perspective and allows me to be okay.”

Hiramandi is streaming on Netflix.