By the time I became a journalist Jaya Bhaduri had become Jaya Bachchan and retired from films, well almost.
The first time I met her was at Shammi Aunty’s home, she had come home carrying special food for the senior actress. In the coming years, I kept bumping into her at an award function, at Prithvi Theatre, at the hospital, and at the airport and even though her husband had imposed a ban on the media Jaya responded spontaneously to people.
The first time I interviewed her was on the sets of Nauker where she was doing patchwork shooting. She explained that the last time she shot with Sanjeev Kumar on this film was before her marriage and now after two kids she was called for the leftover scenes, “It all feels so strange”.
Yes, from Bhopal to Pune and Mumbai and now Delhi as Rajya Sabha member, it has been indeed a long journey for the actor.