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Shaad Ali reveals Amitabh Bachchan was initially hesitant about ‘Kajra Re’: ‘Yeh gaana shoot hi mat karo, yeh nahi chalega’

Director Shaad Ali recalled how 'Kajra Re' faced significant doubts, not just from Amitabh Bachchan, who was initially reluctant to be part of it, but also internally from the team at Yash Raj Films.

Amitabh Bachchan was not keen on shooting Kajra Re.

Long before “Kajra Re” became a Bollywood juggernaut, lighting up dance floors and wedding playlists alike, it was almost never filmed. The now-iconic track from Bunty Aur Babli, which brought together Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, and Aishwarya Rai on screen in a rare and electrifying combination, faced serious internal skepticism, particularly from Amitabh himself.

In an exclusive conversation with SCREEN, director Shaad Ali revealed that the song, widely considered one of the most memorable item numbers in Hindi cinema, nearly didn’t see the light of day. “I knew when I heard an eight-second riff of it… that this is going to work wonders,” Shaad recalled. “But Yash Raj had given it the last number… ki yeh sabse kam popular hoga (that this will be the least popular one). Amit ji ne kaha tha ki yeh gaana shoot hi mat karo (Amit Ji said don’t even shoot this song).” Shaad, however, remained convinced of its potential. He described how internal doubts loomed even as he brought Amitabh in to listen to the track. “Maine jab unhe bulaya tha sunne ke liye… toh he said ki yeh nahi chalega (When I called him to listen to it, he said it won’t work).”

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The director also revealed that Amitabh Bachchan had specific creative feedback, believing the song sounded like it started mid-way through and needed reworking. “He did all that jugalbandi in the song… all the portions from which it starts. I wanted him to sing that, but he said no and wanted Shankar Mahadevan to do it,” Shaad shared. Despite his reservations, Amitabh eventually came around, but not before another twist in the tale. “Later, he was shooting a song for some film, maybe Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna or something else, I don’t exactly remember, and said, ‘Yeh hota hai item song (This is what an item song should be).’ I was like, okay.”

The song’s popularity only grew after release, with performances at countless events and widespread public adoration. Its status was solidified when a television channel dubbed it “the song of the decade.” “Tabhi Amit Ji ka mujhe message aaya ki, ‘I’m sorry, I second guessed it’ (That’s when Amit Ji messaged me saying, ‘I’m sorry, I second guessed it’),” Shaad recounted. But while the song’s rise to cult status is now cemented in pop culture history, the filmmaker remains clear-eyed about what made it truly iconic. “Kajra Re wouldn’t have been what it is without him,” he concluded.

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