- Dia Mirza debuted in the 2001 film Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein
- She learned body confidence during the 2004 film Tumsa Nahin Dekha
- The film's song shoot had 700 men but made her feel empowered
After making her acting debut in the 2001 film Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein, Dia Mirza has featured in multiple memorable films. The actress, seen last in Netflix's Operation Safed Sagar, spoke about her early career and revealed how working on Tumsa Nahin Dekha taught her not to feel objectified, even if she bared it all.
During an appearance on Zoom Spotlight Sessions, the actress revealed that she learned to feel safe, comfortable, and strong in her body while working on the 2004 film Tumsa Nahin Dekha.
“I remember this song that Vaibhavi Merchant shot with us, and that is the only thing I told the producers. It was a song that I had to strip my clothes in, and it had to come down to basically a bra and underwear—I needed to feel comfortable," she revealed.
Recalling the shoot, Dia shared, “We had a crowd of 500 people, which were all men, and a crew of 200 people, which were also mostly men. Aur mujhe iss gaane mein jo mila, vo shayad hi apne kisi aur film ke through mila hoga. (I got so much from the song that I don't think any of my films have given me this much.) I realised I could be totally and completely unaffected by the male gaze and revel and celebrate my own feminine energy and my beauty and not be minimized by that gaze."
According to Dia, the entire experience was “empowering.” She added, “It was Bhatt sahab, Anurag, and Emraan, and just everyone there who made me realize that it's not always about that, but much more.”
Dia shared that the film was being directed by Anurag Basu but later got completed by Mohit Suri, and on the other hand, Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt were the producers. The film featured Emraan Hashmi and Dia Mirza in the lead roles alongside Anupam Kher, Sharat Saxena, and Atul Parchure, among others, in other important roles.
