One of the most celebrated Indian comedies of all time, director Rajkumar Santoshi's Andaz Apna Apna recently marked its 30th anniversary. Featuring Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Raveena Tandon and Karisma Kapoor in the lead roles, the action-comedy hit theatres on November 4, 1994. Although the film gained a vast fanbase over the years, it was initially a box-office failure. Though the movie’s production was plagued by issues between the lead actors, Andaz Apna Apna remains one of the most cherished works in the filmographies of nearly everyone associated with it, with cast and crew members frequently sharing anecdotes from the film’s set. Interestingly, in a 1992 interview, Salman Khan, who played Prem alongside Aamir Khan’s Amar, described Andaz Apna Apna as "the funniest film on the Indian screen ever." "Andaz Apna Apna is a hilarious film. It is incredible. It's the funniest film on the Indian screen ever," Salman said during the chat with ITMB Shows. Talking about Aamir, he noted, "Aamir is damn funny in the film. He’s a talkative character and has all the funny lines. I'm the dumbo. He’s done his role, incredible.” Salman also revealed that he deliberately tried to break the film’s continuity so that it gets delayed. "The film is coming out in six months. I’m desperately trying to delay the film. I’m not giving them dates and harassing them with my broken leg, I’ve cut my hair short. So the continuity is gone." Post the film's release there were a lot of rumours that Aamir and Salman were no longer getting along with each other. Actor Shehzad Khan, who played the role of Bhalla alongside actor Biju Khote’s Robert, once shared how Aamir and Salman often fought on the film’s set. During an interaction with Siddharth Kannan, Shehzad Khan shared, "I have seen it happen in front of my eyes. Many times things would happen. Salman is Salman and Aamir is Aamir. I won’t blame anyone for it. Often, I used to be the bridge between them. I have been very close to Salman since childhood, toh cheezein nipat jaati thi (so things used to be sorted out)." Aamir and Salman had different approaches towards their work and that apparently became the reason behind the tension between them. "Aamir would reach the Mud Island bungalow at 7-7.30 in the morning when call time used to be 9 am. Salman bechaare 10-11 baje tak aa hi jaate the (poor Salman would come by 10-11),” added Khan. Director Rajkumar Santoshi, during an interview with Rajeev Masand on the film’s 25 years in 2019 said that it was the leading ladies who had issues on the sets. "Raveena and Karisma had some tension. But during the shooting, they were totally committed." Recalling the shoot days, the director shared, "They weren’t talking during the climax shoot. They had gone to shoot Aatish (1994) and while returning, they had some fight at the airport and hence, they weren’t talking. So the scene had them tied up to a pillar. When they wished to tell something to each other, they did that through me, example to keep the rope loose because one had to do a hand movement. I shouted at them to speak to each other directly. When we were changing the lighting of the shot, I asked the crew not to open them till the time they don’t talk to each other." The director also talked about the initial reception of the film and shared how the distributor was very new at that time and a lot of people told him "it’ll be risky." The director also stated that the film was not released properly, nor hyped. "What kind of a film it is, also wasn’t promoted well. It was different from the conventional love stories Aamir and Salman would do. People were taking time to absorb and understand this. That’s why initially it wasn’t a success. It gained momentum later," shared Rajkumar Santoshi. Andaz Apna Apna’s TV broadcast, online streaming and other formats eventually made the film an iconic comedy.
