'Some things just become hit': Sulbha Arya on 'Kal Ho Naa Ho' iconic character Kantaben

Mumbai: Her role of Kantaben from 2003's Kal Ho Naa Ho made Sulbha Arya a popular name among cinemagoers but the veteran actor says she still doesn't know what clicked with the audience to make the character so memorable.

Kal Ho Naa Ho, directed by Nikkhil Advani and produced by Karan Johar, starred Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Saif Ali Khan in the lead roles.

Arya, a well-known actor in both Marathi and Hindi film, TV and stage industries, played the ever-shocked, shuddering, Gujarati house help Kantaben who would get scandalised whenever she would see Aman and Rohit (Shah Rukh and Saif) in close quarters.

"I don't remember much. I just remember shaking all the time (in the film). It was Karan's film. Nikhil came home and said, 'Aunty this role has been written. You have to do it.' I was teaching at that time, so I didn't have a lot of time. Then they said, 'We'll do it in eight days'. But we hardly shot for two-three days.

"I knew Saif and Shah Rukh as my son and my husband (both cinematographers) are also from the industry. I didn't feel like there was any shooting going on. I don't think a lot about any role. I haven't taken any formal training, only theatre is my training. It was the same in Kal Ho Naa Ho. Did I have to think about it (the role)? No, I didn't... Some things just become hit," the 74-year-old told PTI in an interview.

Arya currently stars in the short film 2050 Care with Love, which is available on YouTube. It also features comic-actor Jamie Lever.

Directed by Lakshmi Iyer of First Second Chance fame, the 20-minute movie explores the world of an elder (Arya) and her caretaker (Jamie) who develop a deep connection in the era of fleeting connection.  

The actor, also known for TV serials Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi, Filmi Chakkar, Hip Hip Hurray, Sasural Genda Phool as well as films Yes Boss, Koyla and Hera Pheri, said it was not difficult for her to play the character in 2050 Care with Love as it was "closer" to her age.

"I just thought about delivering whatever she (director) had conceived about the character," she added.

Arya also said better characters are now being written for women, both young and old.

"People have started realising what their life is, what their problems are. It is not at a superficial level. Maybe because people like us have started expressing more. Maybe people of my age have started telling others about our problems more and speaking about it loudly which was not there earlier." The actor said when she came to know that Jamie Lever is veteran actor-comic Johny Lever's daughter, it just added to the experience.

"Johny and I are very close friends. We have also worked together recently. But I didn't know who Jamie herself was. If my friend's daughter was doing this role, it didn't feel like work for me," she added.

2050 Care with Love, produced by Santosh Kumar Acharjya under Elios Films Pvt. Ltd., also features Avinash Dwivedi in a pivotal role.