On Rishi Kapoor’s birth anniversary today, actress Meenakshi Seshadri recalls the moment he introduced her to the world of X (formerly Twitter), an incident which left fans surprised when a photo went viral.
Sheshadri, who quit the film industry in 1995 after marrying investment banker Harish Mysore, returned to Mumbai in 2023 after spending some time in the US. Despite her absence, the actor, best known for her roles in blockbusters such as Damini (1993) and Ghayal (1990), kept in touch with friends and occasionally visited India.
In 2015, fans were surprised to see Sheshadri’s picture on X posted by the late Rishi Kapoor, whom she fondly called by his nickname Chintu. Recalling this special moment, Sheshadri says, “I met Chintu ji at his residence in Mumbai when I came to visit him. I used to visit him often as we were neighbours. He lived in Pali Hill, I lived in Union Park, Khar. I wouldn’t say I was very close to Chintu ji, but we shared a great rapport. We have done many films together.”
Kapoor’s X post read, “This is for introducing Meenakshi Seshadri to the X world. I remember the good old days of working with her in Damini.” Seshadri recalls the gesture warmly: “He was very kind to introduce me on his Twitter account. When I decided to start a Twitter account and he supported me with a few followers it was very nice and I thought it was amazing. He comes from such a great family of talent but he had no ego. He was very simple-natured.”
Kapoor died on April 30, 2020, at the age of 67, after a two-year battle with cancer.
Meanwhile, Sheshadri also spoke about leaving behind her successful career in Bollywood and called it “a challenging decision”. She admits, “I’ll be very honest. It was tough for me to leave India and the creative profession because I loved creativity and working with other artistes. Leaving that whole synergy, that aura and starting afresh in the US, was not easy for me.”
The actor revealed, “I tried convincing Harish if he could come to India. He tried for me too, but it didn’t work. After he was in India and trying to work everything out for a year, I said ‘No, I want to go to the US. I want to live where Harish is comfortable, I want to start my family, I’m not young anymore’. So, there was no looking back after that. I just jumped into the American life.”
Now, back in the film industry, Sheshadri is focused on finding projects that harness her potential. “Like every other actress, I want to be used in a very productive way and not wasted. I want to do strong roles and play mature characters in the sense that there should be some depth and integrity,” she explains, adding, “Also because I quit the film soon after it was released Ghatak The (1996) fans have such a memory that they will expect something of a high standard. I don’t want to disappoint them.”
