- Shabana Azmi and Prateik Smita Patil hugged on the sets of Imaginary Rain directed by Vikas Khanna
- Prateik Smita Patil is the son of late actress Smita Patil and politician-actor Raj Babbar
- Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar had wanted to adopt Prateik after his mother’s death
A video of Shabana Azmi and Prateik Smita Patil went viral recently, showing the two sharing a warm hug on the sets of Imaginary Rain. Directed by Michelin-starred chef Vikas Khanna, it marks his second venture in filmmaking. Prateik Smita Patil is the son of the late actress Smita Patil and politician-turned-actor Raj Babbar. Shabana Azmi had a strong bond with Smita Patil, as they worked together in films like Arth and Mandi.
What's Happening
- In the clip shared, Shabana Azmi is seen tightly hugging Prateik Smita Patil as she said, "I've waited 25 years to hug him."
- Prateik replied, "No, no, you've hugged me so many times in these 25 years."
- "I know that Smita is watching us," Shabana Azmi added.
- "Yes, she is. She is smiling," Prateik concluded.
When Prateik Smita Patil Said Shabana Azmi And Javed Akhtar Wanted To Adopt Him
Smita Patil died during childbirth, and Prateik has always been vocal about how it will always be the harshest truth in his life.
In an old interview with Zoom, Prateik made a revelation that he had learned very recently: Shabana Azmi and Javed Akhtar wanted to adopt him. The actor said that it was complicated after his mother's death, but he could have been Farhan Akhtar's stepbrother.
Prateik shared, "I recently found out Shabana Ji and Javed Sahab wanted to adopt me after my mother died. It was kind of complicated. I could've been Farhan's (Akhtar) stepbrother. I find these new things about me all the time. Aur kya hai, batao (what else is there, tell me). It's also very overwhelming. Ye hota toh main pata nahi kaisi zindagi jee raha hota (If this had happened, I don't know what kind of a life I'd be leading now)."
He added, "I'm very grateful for all the love she gets and all the goodwill she has in the industry, among all her colleagues and friends. Shabana Ji was definitely one of them, along with Javed Sahab. Amit Ji (Amitabh Bachchan) has always been very kind and supportive. I think everybody from her time-everybody she shared with-Naseer Sahab (Naseeruddin Shah), Ratna (Pathak Shah) Ji, and the late great Shyam Benegal. That was a different era. I recently found out about myself: I was conceived on the sets of Mirch Masala (1987)."
Prateik got emotional as he spoke about how he had heard numerous things about his childhood that were deeply disturbing. From being in a custody fight to people wanting to adopt him, he was too little to fathom what was going on. But he is deeply grateful to his mother's contemporaries in the industry who looked out for him.
