Known for his romantic films, filmmaker Imtiaz Ali would love to direct a horror film and create something 'that would just terrify viewers.' But the horror would be infused with romance which he felt while filming at yesteryear actress Madhubala's house in Mumbai.
Imtiaz recounted a tale about filming at Madhubala's former home, which was allegedly off-limits at night due to rumours that her spirit haunted it. In Ranveer Allahbadia’s podcast, Imtiaz said, “Madhubala used to have a house called Kismat Bungalow. It has been reconstructed now. But back in the day, they wouldn’t allow people to film there at night, and people generally wouldn’t want to film there at night because they believed that her ghost haunted the place. Who knows if that was true, but that’s what people believed.”
He further revealed that he shot there during night, and entered into the quietest, and darkest corners of that house alone. "I used to wonder if Madhubala’s ghost would come. Although I don’t really believe in spirits, I remember that feeling. It wasn’t just horror, there was something else. There was a sense of awe and romanticism. This is an interesting combination,” Ali said.
Earlier, on Madhubala’s 89th birth anniversary on February 14 this year, Imtiaz shared a picture of her on social media, and wrote, “I have shot nights at her old bungalow hoping for her ghost to show up.”
For him, Madhumati featuring Dilip Kumar and Vyjanthimala has been his favourite Hindi horror movie.
Madhubala has given some classic films Mughal-e-Azam, Chalti Ka Naam Gadi, Mahal, and more. She passed away in 1969 at the age of 36, due to a prolonged illness and marred by tragic romances.
On the work front, Imtiaz's most recently directed film was Amar Singh Chamkila on Netflix starring Diljit Dosanjh and Parineeti Chopra. In the interview, he hinted that the theme of his upcoming project is ‘reminiscence’.
.png)
.jpg)