It’s a momentous time in Bollywood. Superstar Shah Rukh Khan’s superhit film Baazigar – a film which became a milestone in his career – has now completed a milestone of its own. It’s been 20 years to the release of this unforgettable crime thriller!
SRK walked down memory lane yesterday, when he took to Twitter to reminisce: “20 years of Baazigar. Thnx Abbas Mastan Kajol Shilpa & Rakhiji. Abhi bhi haarkar jeetne wale ko Baazigar kehte hain…”
And yes 20 years of Baazigar. Thnx Abbas Mastan Kajol Shilpa & Rakhiji. Abhi bhi haarkar jeetne wale ko Baazigar kehte hain…
On this significant occasion, here’s some rare and interesting trivia about this Abbas Mustan directorial – Baazigar:
1. The term Baazigar means Gambler. The story of the film was loosely based on 19th century Gujarati novel entitled Saraswatichandra written by Govardhanram Madhavaram Tripathi. This crime thriller centered around the character who stops at nothing to get what he wants.
2. Released on 12 November 1993, Baazigar is a remake of Hollywood movie – A Kiss Before Dying (1991) featuring Matt Dillon and Sean Young.
3. For Shah Rukh Khan, this film was a breakthrough in solo lead. Before Baazigar, SRK had scattered and unmemorable titles to his name – like Idiot, Maya Memsaab, and In Which Annie Gives It Those Ones. In Baazigar, Shah Rukh played two characters named Ajay Sharma and Vicky Malhotra.
4. Shilpa Shetty made her debut into Bollywood with Baazigar! She plays Seema Chopra, the girl having a clandestine affair with Ajay Sharma. Interestingly, Abbas Mustan were originally contemplating giving both Kajol’s and Shilpa’s roles to Sridevi. But ultimately, the director duo decided against the idea of a double role for the heroine.
5. This was the first film in which Shah Rukh Khan played the role of the anti – hero. There have not been many films SRK has turned villain in. In fact, many actors including Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan, Anil Kapoor and Akshay Kumar turned down this role when Abbas-Mustan approached them.
6. Baazigar is most important to Shah Rukh Khan due to the fact that this is the first film in which SRK won the Filmfare for the Best Actor!
7. The music of the film – composed by Anu Malik – including several memorable numbers like Kitabein Bohot Si, Chupana Bhi Nahi Aata and Baazigar O Baazigar won Malik the Award for the Best Music Direction.
8. A song still remembered to date – Yeh Kaali Kaali Aankhein featuring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol won the singer Kumar Sanu the Filmfare for the Best Male Singer.
9. Script writers Javed Siddiqui, Akash Khurana and Robin Bhatt took home the Best Screenplay Award for Baazigar.
10. Baazigar was a huge success at the box office back then, gaining title of the Fourth Highest collections in 1993.
