Actor Sharmin Segal has been at the receiving end of trolling for her performance as Alamzeb in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s web series, Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar.

Defending her work in the show, the actor had earlier shared that she had taken inspiration from veteran actor Meena Kumari’s performance in Pakeezah (1971). Now, Meena Kumari’s stepson, filmmaker Tajdar Amrohi has reacted to Segal’s comments, saying that there is “a lot of difference” between the two.

In an interview earlier this month, Segal stated, “Meena Kumari was one of my inspirations. I tried to bring The actor’s nothingness from Pakeezah to my character in Heeramandi.”

In an interview with Zoom TV, Amrohi said, “Zameen aasman ka fark hai between Heeramandi and Pakeezah. Don’t compare the two. Nobody can make Pakeezah again. Neither Meena Kumari nor Kamal Amrohi (filmmaker, his father) can ever be born again.”

He continued, “I don’t know Sharmin. But no, I can’t relate to her statement on nothingness. I must say here, that each one of us has individual tastes. There might be people who have liked Heeramandi more than Pakeezah.”

Amrohi then went on to elaborate on Bhansali’s admiration for his father. The filmmaker added, “Once, Bhansali had come to Kamalistan Studio and asked where my dad used to sit, where he walked. Out of great respect, he touched the ground. That was 15 years ago and I never met him again.”

On August 14, Vikrant Massey and Kriti Kharbanda announced that they are teaming up for the first time for a social comedy, 14 Phere, which will be directed by Devanshu Singh and produced by Zee Studios. While speaking to Mirror (August 14), Vikrant had described the film as an “incredibly funny love story”. Now, we have learnt that the actors are readying to take the film on floors from November 10.

A source close to the development reveals that the first eight-day schedule will take place in the city in a bungalow on Madh Island and in Kamalistan Studio. The lead pair will be joined by the supporting cast, which includes Vinay Pathak, Gauahar Khan, Vineet Kumar, Govind Pandey, and Yamini Das. The makers are ensuring utmost safety, keeping the government mandated-guidelines in mind.

Shariq Patel, CEO, Zee Studios, had said that 14 Phere is an important film and it highlights how, in our country, weddings most often happen between two families and not just two people. As suggested by the title, the film revolves around two weddings.

Both Kriti and Vikrant, who portray Aditi and Sanjay respectively, have been taking workshops with Devanshu through the lockdown, as part of their prep. Vikrant plays a small-town boy from North India while Kriti’s Aditi is a today’s girl with a voice and mind of her own. The actress has been working on voice modulation for her character, while also stalking people on the internet to pick up nuances for her character.

14 Phere will be the first film that Kriti resumes work on post the lockdown, while Vikrant has to complete Haseen Dillruba with Taapsee Pannu before jumping on board the tale of two weddings. The film will be shot in Lucknow, Delhi, Jaipur and Mumbai, and is slated to release on July 9, 2021.