Amrapali Sharma (Ahmedabad Mirror; June 2, 2012)
May 25,2012 AK Hangal returned to face the studio lights after seven long years. Having reached the sets of a TV serial Madhubala on a wheel chair, the 97 year old actor wasn't sure he would be able to handle it physically. But Once the cameras started rolling there was no stopping the actor within .speaking about his experience, Hangal told ,"i have lived my life on the sets. and it was exciting to go back to one."
Hangal , who has starred in over 200 films in his career
spanning more than half a century, revealed that the script urged him to take
up the cameo."I have grown up seeing the industry .When the makers offered
me the role of a veteran actor. Who ends up naming a newborn Madhubala,I instantly
liked it. Though i never met the actress on whose life the serial is apparently
based. she was alive when i started my film career. So, in a way .i connects
with the era. I could identify with the character and was excited to return to
the sets, "says the veteran actor.
Having made several special appearances in films over the years Hangal added,"Cameos have been a major part of my career. for example ,in the 1975 film Deewar, I was part of just one scene in which police inspector Shashi Kapoor kills a boy for stealing bread. I had only one line in the scene."
The actor had last shot for Amol Palekar's film Paheli’s in
2005.infact, he had not gone out of his house of the last eight months."We
were surprised to see him get out of home . he would have done it only for acting, "said his son Vijay and added,
"My father had remained at home for the past few months. The show producer
Saurabh Tiwari and senior executives from the channel came to our place to
offer him the role. Several filmmakers had approached him in the last few
years. but father did not take those up due to health issues."
However, this time around, the script lured Hangal to the sets. When contacted writer NK Abhyankar told mirror, “I had conceived the role keeping Mr Hangar in mind. We wanted someone who could identify with who could identify with 100 hears of cinema"
