Director Chandra Barot, known for the 1978 classic Don, passed away on July 20 at the age of 86. Despite its success, Don had a troubled production history. Producer Nariman Irani faced severe financial hardship
Chandra Barot Amitabh Bachchan Nariman Irani
The director of the 1978 masterpiece Don, Chandra Barot, passed away on Sunday, July 20. He was eighty-six. Even though Don became a huge hit, its backstory is full of surprising twists.
As it happens, creating Don was not that simple. During the film's production, Nariman Irani, the producer, was experiencing severe financial difficulties. He didn't even have enough money for food because things were that bad at that time.
Nariman Irani did not live to see the movie, despite the fact that it eventually became a hit. He tragically passed away on the set of another movie just before its release due to a bizarre accident. Later, Don used his earnings to pay off his debts.
Sameer revealed how they had no money for even food
Lyricist Sameer Anjaan talked candidly about all of this in an interview with DD Urdu. He also said that Khaike Paan Banaras Wala, Don's most famous song, nearly did not make it into the film.
Sameer recalled how Javed Aktar wasn't happy with the second half of the film; he had called it heavy on action. He said, "Javed Akhtar watched the movie with everyone else and felt that the second half was too dry. He felt that it had too much action. So, he advised that a new song be filmed and inserted to balance things out. He was adamant and stubborn about it. He said, ‘No, I want a song."
The issue was that there was no budget. "The film was finished, and the release date was set," Sameer Anjaan continued. He said, "My father was then called. Due to the picture, the poor producer was in such a horrible situation that he was unable to pay for food."
Javed Akhtar pushed for it even after being informed that there was not enough money to shoot anything fresh. "The song was made," Sameer said. Then, however, a new problem emerged. Amitabh Bachchan was scheduled to depart for a foreign country. It would be more than a month before he returned. The song could only be filmed on one day, and there was no set.
They therefore devised a hack. In Goregaon, they located a tabela, or cowshed, and quickly shot the entire scene there. The rest is history, Sameer added, adding, "You won't believe it, but they went to a 'tabela' and shot the song in a couple of hours."
Sameer's interesting anecdote about Amitabh Bachchan
Sameer revealed one more interesting detail. The lyricist Anjaan, his father, was once informed that he would follow in Harivanshrai Bachchan's footsteps. As an alternative, he became inextricably linked to Amitabh Bachchan. Sameer quipped, "However, my father had no idea that the song Khaike Paan Banaras Wala would permanently associate him with Amitabh Bachchan rather than making him the next Harivanshrai Bachchan. It would be impossible to discuss Bachchan today without bringing up the song. However, were you aware that the song wasn't even supposed to be in the film?"
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