On the 20th anniversary of his Oscar-nominated film Lagaan, actor Aamir Khan thanked the film's producer, his ex-wife Reena Dutta. He said that before working on Lagaan, Reena had little interest in movies, but that she quickly got familiar with even the technical side of things, to the point that she scolded him for making a decision that caused a delay in filming.
Reena and filmmaker Ashutosh Gowariker were often at odds, according to Aamir Khan, and he'd have to intervene as a referee to resolve the conflicts. She even scolded him at one point.
He said, "Uss din itni daant padi (That day I got a good scolding)."
Reena promised Aamir that she would learn and that he encouraged her to give it a go. He said, "Usne I learn kya bol diya, usne pura seekh liya (She outdid herself, and learned it all). She met Subhash Ghai and Manmohan Shetty, the lab's director. She went to the lab and asked to see a negative, a sound negative, the entire lab procedure (processing, printing, etc.). She went to meet producers, directors, and technicians in order to gain a better understanding of the filmmaking process. I also told her that I wasn't going to tell her anything. As a result, she had to teach herself. She worked it out and made a movie as if she were a veteran. And that's something I'll remember always in my life."
He also recalls being scolded by Reena for making a decision that caused the shoot to be delayed. Aamir and Ashutosh told Reena they'd need 1500 extras after realising the 500 they'd asked weren't going to be enough.
"So he told Reena, ‘This isn’t looking enough I would need more people.’ Reena was like, ‘Now, at the last moment, how will I get more people? You asked for 500 people and I got it. Now, you shoot'." Reena had scolded him for doing 'Masti,' he said. Their decision to postpone the shot ultimately cost them more money, but it resulted in a better scene, according to Aamir.
From 1986 to 2002, Aamir and Reena were married. Junaid and Ira Khan are their two children. Aamir is now married to filmmaker Kiran Rao and has a kid, Azad Rao Khan, with him.