Poonam Dhillon was just 16 years old when she made her debut in Yash Raj Chopra’s Trishul. A multi-starrer with Bollywood stalwarts such as Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor, Sanjeev Kumar, Rakhee Gulzar, Hema Malini and more, Poonam was the youngest and the only newcomer in the film. However, the actress recently discussed an incident where, despite her age and status as a debutante in the industry, she stood up for herself when asked to wear a bikini by Yash Chopra.
Poonam Dhillon said no to Yash Chopra when asked to wear a bikini, and Pamela Chopra reacted
Poonam Dhillon was only 16 when she and Sachin Pilgaonkar appeared in the popular song from Trishul, known as Gapoochi Gapoochi. For this song sequence shot at the Oberoi hotel’s swimming pool, director, Yash Raj Chopra asked the debutante to wear a bikini, revealed the actress in an interview with ANI. However, Poonam refused this request and asked to be provided with a proper swimming costume. Pamela Chopra, Yash’s wife, called her ‘defiant little girl’, stated Poonam. But when the asked actress asked Pamela if she had done a horrible thing, she said that Poonam was very clear in her views. The Trishul actress revealed:
“Yash Chopra said we are going to shoot a scene at the Oberoi hotel’s swimming pool. They bought some bikini for me, and I said I’m not going to wear that. Mrs Yash Chopra told me that ‘this little defiant girl, she just threw the bikini and said I won’t wear this.’ I asked her, ‘Did I do such a horrible thing?’ But she told me that I was very clear.”
Poonam Dhillon says that she was a swimmer, but was not comfortable in a bikini
Poonam Dhillon, in the same interview, revealed that she was a swimmer since her childhood and had also competed at the state level. Calling the bikini an ‘itsy bitsy’ thing, the actress stated that she was comfortable in swimming costumes and could also wear shorts, but not a bikini. Poonam revealed that after a lot of negotiations, the filmmaker had to comply with her refusal and provided her with a full-piece swimming costume. She said:
“I’ve been a swimmer from my childhood. I’ve been a swimmer up to state level. I was comfortable with swimming costume but that itsy-bitsy thing wasn’t comfortable, so I said I’ll wear a swimming costume. I’m comfortable with shorts because I used to do gymnastics in school but to suddenly wear this little thing…so finally, after much back-and-forth, they got me one full piece. ”
Poonam said that after this incident Yash Chopra’s wife, Pamela would say to her that despite being a young girl, she was very sure of her mind. However, the actress remembers saying no to wearing the bikini; but she doesn’t think that she would ever throw something. Talking about Pamela, Poonam said:
“Yash Chopra’s wife Pam ji used to tell me, ‘You were a little girl but you were so very sure of your mind.’ I don’t remember this at all. I can’t imagine me throwing something and say I won’t wear it.”
What are your thoughts on Poonam Dhillon saying no to wearing a bikini at 16 years in Yash Chopra’s Trishul? Let us know.
Also Read: Poonam Dhillon’s Tragic Love Life, Affair With A Married Man, Marriage To Ashok Thakeria And Divorce