Mita Vashisht says Shah Rukh Khan saved her life on Dil Se sets, recalls near-fatal incident

Actor Mita Vashishth has fond memories of working with Shah Rukh Khan, recalling his warmth and kindness on the sets of Dil Se. The two had previously worked together in The Idiot before reuniting for Mani Ratnam's film. In a recent interaction, Mita shared several anecdotes from the shoot, including an incident in which SRK saved her life.

In an interview with Screen, Mita recalled how Shah Rukh warmly welcomed her when they reunited for Dil Se. She said he was affectionate and protective throughout the shoot, particularly during a fight sequence that never made it to the final cut of the film. Recalling how he would place his palm behind her head whenever he pushed her against a stone wall to prevent her from getting hurt, Mita described him as a wonderful co-star. She also revealed that a small stone accidentally slipped from her hand and cut Shah Rukh's head during another part of the sequence, but he remained kind towards her.

Mita then recalled another scene in which she was carrying an AK-47 and had to make Shah Rukh cross a stretch blindfolded. She said she was positioned behind him in the line as they prepared for the shot in Dalhousie, where the weather was freezing cold. She added, "The shoes we had been given had plastic soles and we couldn't properly feel the ground beneath our feet. Mani sir kept saying, 'Go back, go back, go back.' So I kept stepping backwards, very slowly, taking tiny steps. But at one point, I suddenly found myself looking up at the sky and feeling as though I was falling. I had actually reached the edge of a steep ridge and was about to fall."

She further recalled how Shah Rukh's quick reflexes saved her from falling off the ridge. She said, "But Shah Rukh's reflexes were extraordinary. In a split second, he grabbed the front of my jacket and pulled me back up. One moment, I was falling backwards with an AK-47, and the very next moment, his hand was grabbing my jacket and pulling me to safety. He actually saved my life that day. With the weight of the gun and the steep slope, I could have fallen all the way down, with nothing to stop me. I don't know what might have happened, but I genuinely believe something terrible was prevented because of his fast reaction."

Released in 1998, Dil Se is a romantic thriller written and directed by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan, Manisha Koirala and Preity Zinta in the lead roles. It follows Amar (Shah Rukh), an All India Radio journalist who falls in love with the mysterious Meghna (Manisha), unaware of the troubled past she is hiding. Its music, composed by AR Rahman, including the iconic song Chaiyya Chaiyya, remains popular to this day. Mita Vashisht played a member of the militant group associated with Meghna. The film also featured Raghubir Yadav, Piyush Mishra, Sabyasachi Chakrabarty and Sanjay Mishra in supporting roles.