Khushbu Sundar was to be launched in Ram Teri Ganga Maili, but Raj Kapoor replaced her: ‘She is herself a kid and…’ | Bollywood

Khushbu Sundar began her career as a child artist in Hindi films in the 80s, before finding fame as a lead star in Tamil and Telugu films in the 90s. But it almost went very differently. The actor-turned-politician recently revealed that she had been cast by the late Raj Kapoor in Ram Teri Ganga Maili, only to be eventually replaced by Mandakini. (Also read: Khushbu Sundar recounts harrowing incident as a newcomer: ‘A hero asked me, chance mil jayega kya?’)

Khushbu on Ram Teri Ganga Maili

Speaking with Vickey Lalwani on his YouTube channel, Khushbu revealed, “Raj Kapoor wanted to launch me in Ram Teri Ganga Maili. We also did a photo shoot for the same. After looking at those photos, Raj Kapoor had said, ‘She is my Ganga.’ The plan was to finish the Gangotri schedule first, but it was snowing at the time, so they decided to shoot in Kolkata first, where they would show the brothel scene. In this segment of the film, the character is already a mother to a baby.”

Ram Teri Ganga Maili was shot in 1984 and released the following year. It launched Raj Kapoor’s youngest son Rajiv Kapoor and Mandakini. The latter came on board after Raj Kapoor had second thoughts about Khushbu. The actor revealed, “I was not even fully 14 years old at the time, so Raj ji said, ‘She is herself a kid, and a baby in her hand won’t look good.’ He couldn’t push the film either, and because of this, I couldn’t star in the film.”

Khushbu’s film career and recent work

Ram Teri Ganga Maili was eventually released in August 1985 and went on to be a big hit. It was the last film directed by Raj Kapoor before his death a few years later. Khushbu made her debut as a lead star in Meri Jung, also in 1985. She made her Telugu film debut in Kaliyuga Pandavulu (1986). Soon after, she moved her base to Chennai, appearing in many Tamil and Telugu hits over the next decade. After a 13-year hiatus, she returned to films with Rajinikanth-starrer Annaatthe in 2021. She was last seen in Vanvas, her first Hindi film in over 30 years.