Sanjay Leela Bhansali says he felt Sharmin Segal was 'right choice' for Alamzeb in 'Heeramandi'

Sanjay Leela Bhansali clarified that Sharmin Segal wasn't cast in Heeramandi solely because she is his niece.

In an interview with India Today, the 61-year-old Indian filmmaker revealed that Sharmin underwent multiple casting rounds, and her facial features perfectly suited the role of Alamzeb.

The Padmavat director said, "She has a face that is exactly what Alamzeb should be, someone who doesn’t want to be a tawaif, she doesn’t talk like a tawaif, and she doesn’t walk like a tawaif."

"There was something innocent about her face, whereas everyone else had lived life, they had survived manipulation and mind games. You needed someone with a fresh, innocent quality. I felt Sharmin was the right choice for Alam, not because she is my niece."

Talking about how he decided to cast Sharmin, SLB said, "She had to go through the mills of the industry. There were countless tests and auditions. I did endless tests with her after I decided to cast her."

"I told her, ‘You have to tough it out, you have to get it right because you have never been in this world, you have never acted before. All these other actors have worked for a long period, they have played such characters and understood all these nakhras and thumkas and the nazakat."

Bhansali's inaugural directorial web series, Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, is now available for streaming on Netflix.