Maheep Kapoor : Shanaya was traumatized when her Dharma film was shelved

Being launched by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions is a dream for many aspiring actors. The production house, known for launching stars like Alia Bhatt, Sidharth Malhotra, Varun Dhawan, Lakshya, Ananya Panday, Janhvi Kapoor, and Ishaan Khattar, had announced another star debut—Sanjay and Maheep Kapoor’s daughter, Shanaya. In 2022, Dharma Productions introduced a film titled Bedhadak, which was set to mark Shanaya's debut alongside Lakshya and Gurfateh Pirzada, with Shashank Khaitan directing. However, before it could take off, the film was quietly shelved.

Maheep Kapoor recently opened up about the incident on her show, The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives. During a discussion with Seema Sajdeh, Karan Johar stepped in to mediate their differences. Maheep shared the turmoil she was facing at the time, saying, “I was dealing with my own madness. I exposed my elderly parents and Shanaya to COVID-19, and we all fell ill. On top of that, doctors were saying my mother needed to be hospitalized. It was a lot to handle after my house help, Rekha, passed away.”

She continued, “Shanaya’s film didn’t start, and she was traumatized. You had to intervene.” Turning to Seema, Maheep added, “I wasn’t there for her, but she didn’t understand the circumstances.”

Seema responded, “I didn’t need her to be there for me. I needed to be there for her, and she didn’t allow it. That’s my issue with her.”

Though Bedhadak didn’t materialize, Shanaya Kapoor is now set to make her debut in the pan-India Telugu-Malayalam film Vrushabha, starring Mohanlal.


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