Mahesh Bhatt fondly remembers Reema Lagoo 8 years after her sudden demise |

Reema Lagoo, known for the warmth she radiated on screen and the emotional depth she brought to her roles, left the film industry in mourning when she suddenly passed away on May 18, 2017. Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt — who collaborated with her across film and television — in a candid chat with ETimes, recalls the moment he heard the news of her demise and the stillness that followed. Fondly remembering the many creative moments together, Bhatt honoured her memory, her artistry, and the profound legacy she left behind.We lost Reema Lagoo — someone you collaborated with so often — far too soon, didn’t we?Mahesh Bhatt: Even now, eight years after her sudden passing, I see her luminous eyes, her unspoken warmth, the stillness from which her performances flowed. Some presences don’t vanish. They settle into the heart.What was your reaction to her sudden demise?Bhatt: Eight years ago, on an ordinary morning, my phone rang. It was Gurudev Bhalla, my protégé, producer of Naamkaran. ’Sir,’ he said gently, ‘Reema Lagoo is gone. She passed this morning. The shoot is cancelled. May I come pick you up?’ His words froze the day. As sudden as death—everything changed. Moments later, I stood beside her. Still. Silent. The warmth gone. She was 58. And just like that, memory took over.What were some of your memories of working with this charming actress?Bhatt: I was back on the set of Aashiqui, day one. Reema was playing a single mother —quiet, dignified, wounded. The scene where she asks her son to return her mangalsutra— a silent declaration that the marriage is over, became the soul of the film. Another moment that lingers was her advice to Anu(Aggarwal), the young lead, not to give up her career just to soothe a man’s insecurity. Reema played that scene with rare conviction, quietly challenging the old scripts that demanded women surrender their dreams. She didn’t just perform it—she lived it.Thereafter, you went on to work with her on several projects Bhatt: We worked again in ‘Gumrah’, with Sridevi, where she played a mother revealing a long-buried truth as she approached death. And later in Naajayaz, as a woman torn between her son—a cop—and her lover, an underworld don. Reema’s performances never shouted; they ached, they endured, they spoke with stillness.Then came ‘Naamkaran’, the television adaptation of your film ‘Zakham’?Bhatt: When we were casting the matriarch, I said, ‘Only Reema Lagoo.’. She had stepped away from screen work, was doing theatre, but agreed to meet. After hearing the part, she smiled and said, ‘Will you direct the first episode, just to set the tone?’ I said, ‘Yes, Reema ji. I will.’ That day, I returned to the set—and watched her breathe life into that world. She uplifted everyone. Her grace, her precision, her emotional depth turned every line into something more.Her death must have shaken you.Bhatt: That breath was gone. We stood around her, stunned. It felt as though time had paused, the sun extinguished at high noon. But she lives on—in memory, in every frame she graced, in the quiet strength she brought to her roles. Thank you, Reema ji—for the truth you embodied, and the light you left behind.