Sushmita Sen says 'Mahesh Bhatt publicly attacked and insulted me on the sets of Dastak'

Sushmita Sen revealed how Mahesh Bhatt insulted her on the sets of Dastak. Sushmita made her debut with the film in 1996.

Sushmita Sen made her debut in 1996 with Dastak, directed by Mahesh Bhatt. She made her debut in films two years after winning the Miss Universe pageant in 1994. The actress played the role of a beauty queen in Dastak. In a new interview with Twinkle Khanna, Sushmita revealed that Mahesh Bhatt offered her Dastak, despite having no background in acting. Despite Sushmita's reservations, Mahesh Bhatt convinced her to take up the role. However, he broke her inhibitions by insulting her on the sets, Sushmita revealed.

Sushmita recounted the incident when Mahesh Bhatt insulted her in front of everyone on the sets during the muharat shot. The actress shared, "He broke inhibitions in front of 40 media people and 20 production guys, publicly attacking me. I started crying, 'I told you I can't act, why you called me for this, I don't know how to act.' He's like, ‘kya leke aaye ho (what have you brought to me), playing Miss Universe like this on camera. She can't act to save her life. (sic)'" However, Sushmita mentioned that she thinks Mahesh Bhatt is a fabulous director.

How did Sushmita get on board for the role? Sushmita revealed that Mahesh Bhatt called her while she was in Mumbai to visit her family. He later convinced her to play herself in the movie. For those unaware, Sushmita played a role opposite Sharad Kapoor, who stalked her character in the movie. Mukul Dev was the lead actor in the film.

Sushmita Sen was last seen in Aarya 2, where she played the titular role.