Mumbai: Veteran actor Shilpa Shirodkar has shared a startling anecdote from her early career, revealing a time when a newspaper headline falsely reported her death, causing immense distress to her family. The actress, known for several hits in the early 90s, later discovered this disturbing news was merely a promotional gimmick for her 1995 film Raghuveer.
In an interview with Pinkvilla, Shilpa recounted the incident that occurred while she was shooting for Raghuveer in Kullu Manali with co-star Suniel Shetty. “I was in Kullu Manali. My dad was trying to call the hotel because we didn’t have mobile phones at that time. I was shooting with Suniel Shetty there. Everyone who was watching the shoot there kept thinking if this is Shilpa or someone else because they knew the news. The people who were seeing the shoot were confused whether it was really me because they knew the news,” she explained.
Upon returning to her room, Shilpa was met with a barrage of missed calls from her anxious father. “My parents were worried; there was a headline in a newspaper that read, ‘Shilpa Shirodkar was shot dead.’ Then I was told it was for a film’s promotion, I was like ‘Okay’. Yes, thoda zyada hogaya (This went too far),” she admitted. Shilpa emphasized the lack of communication at the time: “There was no PR activity or anything at that time. Kuch pata hi nahi tha na (I was not aware of anything). I was the last one to know that something like this was going to happen. No one used to take permission at that time.” Despite the shock, she concluded, “The film worked well, so I wasn’t really angry.”
Raghuveer, directed by K. Pappu, was released on May 19, 1995. The action-drama also starred Sudha Chandran and Suresh Oberoi and achieved moderate success at the box office, grossing over ₹6 crore worldwide.
Shilpa Shirodkar made her acting debut in Ramesh Sippy’s 1989 film Bhrashtachar, where she portrayed a blind girl alongside Mithun Chakraborty and Rekha. Her filmography includes notable movies such as Khuda Gawah, Aankhen, Pehchaan, Gopi Kishan, Bewafa Sanam, and Mrityudand. She was last seen on the big screen in the 2000 film Gajagamini. After 2013, she transitioned to television and recently participated in Bigg Boss 18, hosted by Salman Khan, in 2024.