Dilip Kumar faked illness to delay Saudagar shoot, angry Subhash Ghai called off film: ‘It was over a drunk scene’

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Why Dilip Kumar kept delaying Saudagar’s shoot

Saudagar features a scene in which Dada Veer (Dilip) is standing by a river, inebriated and cursing. This visual then cuts to show Dada Thakur (Raaj Kumar) observing Veer’s actions from his mansion. “For three days, although the entire unit was ready with all equipment and preparation every day, set to film the scene, Dilip saab didn’t show up. When we contacted his hotel on day one, he said he was unwell. The next day, he said his wife, Saira Banu, was unwell,” Kamlesh shared during an appearance on The Raavya Sarda Show.

He continued, “On the third day, Subhash Ghai got upset. He immediately called his brother, Ashok Ghai, who was handling the movie’s production, and told him, ‘The shooting is cancelled. We are going back to Mumbai. Book everyone’s tickets. Saudagar will not be made.’ Everyone got scared.” Ashok immediately sought Kamlesh’s help, and they both visited Dilip Kumar.

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Remembering that Dilip seemed alright when they met him in the hotel, Kamlesh recalled Dilip telling them, “Although I have acted drunk in many scenes in movies such as Devdas, Sagina, and Sunghursh over the years, I played those when I was young. At 35, an actor has massive control over their body. When you play drunk in a scene, if your performance is a bit below an adequate level, it won’t look convincing and could be considered underacting; but if the level is higher, it comes across as overacting. So, maintaining that range is not easy, especially in my 60s (he was 68 at that time).”

Dilip Kumar-Kamlesh Pandey’s masterplan

However, he agreed to do the scene but on one condition. Asking Kamlesh not to reveal this to Subhash Ghai, Dilip requested him to stand behind the camera while they filmed the scene. “Keep watching me. If I begin overacting, give me a signal; and if I begin underacting, give me another signal. I will find the balance based on that,” the actor told the writer.

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Kamlesh agreed to his request, and they shot the scene. However, Dilip was still not happy, thinking it was just another drunk scene in his extensive repertoire, which already had enough similar ones. Kamlesh proposed, “Let’s do one thing. Let’s make a bet. If people don’t clap after seeing your performance in this scene, I will give you Rs 100, and if their response is the opposite, you should give me Rs 100.”

The scene eventually earned significant praise, prompting Kamlesh to contact Dilip to claim the bet amount. “I never got that Rs 100,” he added. Saudagar also featured Manisha Koirala, Vivek Mushran, Amrish Puri, Mukesh Khanna, Gulshan Grover, Anupam Kher, and Jackie Shroff in key roles.