For as long as one can remember, Bollywood kissing scenes prior to a decade were rather metaphorically depicted by the mingling of two flowers. Here comes Padmini Kolhapure in the picture, who surprised India and the UK, all the same, when she gave Prince Charles a peck on the cheek during his India visit. 

Prince Charles had visited India, years before he wed the charismatic Lady Diana. During the trip, he made a stop at a studio when a film was being shot. When Padmini heard about his visit, she rushed to greet him. 

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A user shared a brief video of their encounter in which Bollywood actor Padmini planted a kiss on Prince Charles’ cheeks as she welcomed him with a Garland. The actor even went on to confess on TV in an interview in 2013 that she came to be recognised as the woman who kissed Prince Charles. 

“He was visiting Mumbai and I don’t know what he thought that he wanted to see a shoot. We were shooting for ‘Ahista Ahista’ at Rajkamal Studios. Shashikalaji did his Indian aarti and I just greeted him with a peck on his cheek. But, in those days, it became a big thing. I remember I went to London for a holiday and this British immigration officer asked me, ‘Are you the same person who kissed Prince Charles?’ I was left embarrassed,” she said in an interview. 

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Padmini Kolhapure told Hindustan Times, “It was just a peck on the cheek…the media took it somewhere else. It was no big deal.”

Padmini Kolhapure started her career in Bollywood as a child artist. She featured in films, including ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’, wherein she played the young Zeenat Aman. She also starred in ‘Prem Rog’, ‘Souten’, ‘Woh Saat Din’, and ‘Pyar Jhukta Nahin’, among others.