Subhash Ghai and his Pardes heroine remember Pandhari Juker
Hiren Kotwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; February 19, 2020)

Hindi cinema’s veteran make-up artist Pandhari Juker passed away on Monday. He was 88. He worked with actors down the decades, from Meena Kumari, Nargis and Madhuri Dixit to Dilip Kumar, Sunil Dutt and Bachchan.

Dilip Kumar introduced Subhash Ghai to Pandhari Dada during Vidhatha and the showman got him to do the make-up for all his leading ladies, from Meenakshi Seshadri (Hero) and Madhuri (Ram-Lakhan) to Mahima Chaudhry (Pardes). “After Vidhaata, I told him I was making a film with newcomers and wanted him to work on their looks. When I saw Meenakshi she was a perfect Radha,” recalls Ghai, adding for Dada make-up for him wasn’t only a technical craft. “He put his soul into it, that’s why he is a legend.”

His Pardes heroine, Mahima informed that every make-up artist she worked with since her first ad, had trained with and assisted Dada. “I did a few campaigns with him too. He did my make-up for my first screen-test. I was unsure if Mr Ghai had liked me and told him we might need another change. He smiled and said, ‘No beta, you’ve been selected. We’re doing the test to see which looks to shortlist for the film,’” she flashbacked. One tip? “He would tell me, ‘Beta, jitna kum, utna zyada achha,’” Mahima signs off.