Actor Taha Shah Badusha, who rise to fame after playing the tragic character Tajdar in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, talks about the concentrated audition process that led him to get the role. Taha said that he was primarily anxious to get any kind of part in the show, and was then upgrade to the role of Tajdar’s best friend. But Bhansali sir saw something in his eyes and asked him to test for the role of Tajdar. Taha said in an interview that when he was telling that he was not going to play the best friend, he started requesting Bhansali to reassess, as he had no idea what the filmmaker had in mind.
When asked about her difficult audition process, Taha said in an interview with the Urban Asian YouTube channel, “I actually signed for the role in three days. Also, I was chasing the audition for fifteen months. Me and my friend, we literally begged and begged the casting agents to consider us for any role.” Taha said he didn’t have anything available for him, so he signed up with the hope that He decided to do the part hoping that he would impress Bhansali, and he would be called for future projects.
But fate had something else in store. Three weeks later, he was called to meet Bhansali, who observed that no one know him, even though he had been working with him for a decade. Bhansali said that he should play the character of Balraj, Tajdar’s friend. “Two weeks later, when I was going to sign the contract, I got a call saying, ‘We’re really sorry, but sir has decided to go another way with you, and you may not get the role.
“I essentially just grabbed his hand and started pleading him, and said that, ‘Sir, please don’t take me out of this role, it means so much to me. This is the utmost opportunity of my life, If I have done something wrong, please forgive me” After this Bhansali told him to sit down and take a breath and try for Tajdar instead.
Taha said that before Tajdar was finalized for the role, he waited weeks for any kind of good news. He started calling casting director Shruti Mahajan, who became ‘annoyed’ by his constant requests for information. She tells him that she could not give him any update until Bhansali tell her what he wants to do. Taha did not want to lose the supporting role he was originally trying for, and told Shruti that he was okay with not getting the Tajdar role, and would be happy to play a supporting role instead. “I was dying,” he said.
“During that month, I was offered three other projects. There was an international project and two domestic projects. I was getting good money for them, and I also had to run my own household, but I stayed,” he said that a few months later, the producers of these three projects told him to stop playing the game and step back if he was so unsure. “And with a heavy heart, I said no to all 3 projects”. “After three days I got a call that sir wants to meet you, come to the set.” And then Bhansali sir told him that he had been selected as Tajdar. The pressure, the stress… it was unbelievable.
