Veteran actress Sharmila Tagore quietly battled cancer in 2023, a fact that only recently came to light, leaving fans surprised by how discreetly she faced the challenge, reports NDTV.
Her daughter, Soha Ali Khan, has now spoken about that difficult time in their lives, sharing personal insights into her mother's health.
In a heartfelt interview with Nayandeep Rakshit on YouTube, Soha said, "I have had loss in my family. We have been through stressful situations, as everybody does." She added, "With my mother, she was one of the very few people to be diagnosed with lung cancer at stage zero, and no chemotherapy, nothing. It was cut out of her and she is, touchwood, fine."
Speculation about Sharmila Tagore's health first surfaced during her appearance on Koffee with Karan in 2023, where she was joined by her son, Saif Ali Khan.
During the episode, host Karan Johar revealed that he had initially approached Sharmila for a role in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani — the part eventually played by Shabana Azmi. "I'd offered Sharmilaji the part played by Shabanaji. She was my very first choice. But because of health reasons at that time, she couldn't say yes. It is a regret I have," he said.
Sharmila responded, "It was at the height of COVID. They hadn't really grappled with it at that time, we were not vaccinated. After my cancer... they didn't want me to take that risk."
Most recently, Sharmila Tagore stars in a Bengali film titled Puratwan, releasing today, where she shares the screen with Rituparna Sengupta. Her previous project, Gulmohar (2023), alongside Manoj Bajpayee, earned widespread praise and secured three National Awards, including Best Feature Film in Hindi and Best Screenplay (Dialogues).
Bd-Pratidin English/ AM
