Sanjay Leela Bhansali feared negative reception of 'Devdas' during release

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s clip from an old interview with Rediff has been making rounds on social media on the eve of his 61st birthday.

In the video, the director could be seen expressing his sentiments about the Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai starrer Devdas, which premiered at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival in 2002.

Bhansali expressed gratitude over the reception that his film received worldwide, stating that the Gangubai Kathiawadi director was “surprised by the reception that Devdas got at Cannes.”

He further talked about getting “cold-feet” prior to its premiere at the event, puzzled with different questions in mind.

The director admitted: "Yes, because it was a very big moment, a very happy moment. Right from the time the film was selected for a Cannes screening, I knew it would work. But it was the first screening of the film, and that too at a big film festival.”

“So I was anxious about how it would be received. Would people be uncomfortable with the film? Would they find it too long?" He explained.

The director went on to talk about his experience, referring to Devdas as one of his most “talked-about” films to this day.

He was surprised to learn of the film getting a “standing ovation that lasted several minutes.”

Sanjay was joined by Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan at the Devdas premiere at Grand Theatre Lumiere at Cannes.

He shared: “Many doubts nagged me. Then I decided to flow with the time and see how the movie was received. It felt nice when we got a standing ovation that lasted several minutes.”

Devdas (2002) starred Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, and Madhuri Dixit in lead roles alongside other cast.