2 weeks Ago
Over three decades after Mahesh Bhatt and Pooja Bhatt’s controversial magazine cover stirred headlines, Rahul Bhatt has finally shared his take. More than three decades have passed since filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and his daughter, actor Pooja Bhatt, were featured in a now-infamous magazine cover, where they were photographed sharing a kiss. The image sparked a whirlwind of controversy and continues to haunt conversations around the Bhatt family even today.
Recently, Mahesh’s son, Rahul Bhatt, was asked to weigh in on the matter—and his response was as unfazed as it was candid. In a conversation with Hindi Rush, Rahul recalled being just 14 years old when the photograph was published. “Kuch farq nahi padta.
It’s like water off a duck’s back. Hum jaante hain sach kya hai, aur humne bachpan se sab dekha hai," he said, brushing off the decades-old backlash. For him, it’s just noise that doesn’t deserve energy.
Rahul reflected on how growing up in a film family shapes one’s resilience. “Film parivaar ke bachche ya toh bohot messed up hote hain, ya bohot mazboot. Log sochte hain humein chinta hoti hai, lekin aisa nahi hai," he added, suggesting that the Bhatt kids, at least, had learned to navigate public scrutiny without letting it define them.
Pooja Bhatt has also addressed the controversy in the past, most notably in a candid interview with Siddharth Kannan. She called the photo moment “absolutely innocent" and expressed dismay at how easily people project their own biases. “Agar log baap-beti ke rishte ko hi galat nazar se dekh sakte hain, toh woh kuch bhi soch sakte hain.
Aur fir hum family values ki baat karte hain? Bahut badi joke hai," she remarked, pointing out the hypocrisy that often accompanies moral outrage. Despite the noise, Pooja and Mahesh Bhatt shared a successful run of collaborations in the ’90s, with films like Daddy, Dil Hai Ki Manta Nahin, Sadak, Sir, and Zakhm leaving a mark on Indian cinema. The controversy, while persistent, remains just that—a side note in the larger story of a father-daughter duo whose artistic chemistry spoke louder than the criticism ever could.
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