‘I felt finished, didn’t know how to recover from it’: Bhumi Pednekar recalls heartbreak of India’s ‘biggest flop film’

‘An incomplete film was put out’

In a conversation with Mid-Day, Bhumi revealed that what eventually reached theatres was not the film the actors had signed on for. According to her, a significant portion of the story was never even shot.

“The script that we read was complete, but a large part of it was never filmed. What released was an incomplete film. I wish I had known better — maybe if I was a part of the system, I could have manoeuvred things differently. I was in shock. I kept wondering what was happening because nothing like this had ever happened before. Eventually, I told myself this was a learning,” she said.

She added that nearly 35 per cent of the film remained unshot, and the decision to release it came as a surprise to her.

“We didn’t shoot about 35 percent of the film. I genuinely don’t know what happened. It’s still a mystery to me that I was suddenly told the film was being released. I was told it went over budget and stretched out too long. I don’t know where we as actors fit into that situation, because none of it happened because of us,” she explained.

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‘It was a heartbreaking time’

Bhumi described the episode as deeply distressing on a personal and professional level. “It was a very heartbreaking time in my life. I felt finished. I didn’t know how to recover from it,” she admitted, adding that she now sees it as a dark period she is trying to move past.

She also said that the entire situation still feels unresolved in her mind as to who is to be blamed for the fiasco.

“I genuinely don’t have an answer for this. It’s still a khichdi in my head — who was responsible. I keep wondering whether I contributed to it or someone else did. But it was a decision the makers took at that time, which they felt was right. It was also a time when the industry had not fully recovered from the pandemic. It was just a mess,” she said.

Narratives within the film industry

Bhumi also reflected on how narratives are formed within the industry and the gap between perception and reality.

“What amazes me is that people’s perception is one thing, but within the fraternity people know everything. Yet they still choose to believe the perception that’s been created. For me, this was a realisation that the only thing I have is my work as an actor. My job is to give my best to whatever content comes my way in that moment,” she said.

Released in 2023, The Lady Killer was directed by Ajay Behl, who initially confirmed that the film had been released in theatres in an “incomplete” form, adding that it was “no surprise” audiences found it “choppy and disjointed.” He later withdrew that remark, saying his earlier comment had been misread and clarified that the project was in fact a “complete film.”