Movies

Swades turns 17: Director Ashutosh Gowariker shares story behind the audition of 30 women for Dadi Setu’s role

By Aman Shukla

On Friday, Ashutosh Gowariker’s movie Swades turned 17. Sharing a photograph from one of the casting auditions for the moive, Ashutosh uncovered how he picked the one who portrayed the role of Dadi Setu.

Sharing an image from the audition day alongside a photograph of the one who played Dadi Setu in the moive, Ashutosh shared an interesting anecdote. He wrote:  “On this 17th Year of Swades, sharing a BTS image -8 of the 30 women that I auditioned for the character of Dadi Setu. All had to look up at the camera and say one word – BIJLI! The woman who said it with the most emotion got the part. She was 102. #Swades #17YearsOfSwades.”

Many individuals responded to Ashutosh’s post in the comments section. One individual commented, “She was adorable & made that take brighter with her sweetness. Love her short but beautiful moment & each moment which added a spark of magic to one of the most real and touching films I’ve ever seen. Thank you, to @iamsrk & everyone else who made it possible #17YearsOfSwades.”

Another said, “One of the best movies made in India. I consider it to be @iamsrk one of the best if not the best accomplishments as an actor. Kaveri Amma, Gayatri, Mewaram, Postmaster saheb unforgettable characters. The part where SRK goes for recovery for Kaveri amma’s money is the most hard-hitting.”

Swades was released on December 17, 2004. Actors Shah Rukh Khan (as Mohan Bhargava), Gayatri Joshi (as Geeta), Kishori Balla (as Kaveri Amma) played the lead roles in the movie.

Aman Shukla

Aman Shukla is a post-graduate in mass communication. A media enthusiast who has a stronghold on communication, content writing, and copy writing. Aman is currently working as a subeditor at dailyindianews.com and can be reached at [email protected]