We bring to you some facts about these iconic films you didn’t know.   

1. Rang De Basanti was originally called The Young Guns of India.

This movie never gets old, the best story with the best star cast. But it was not easy to decide the name of the movie from ‘Ahuti’ to ‘The Young Guns of India‘ to finally ‘Rang De Basanti‘. We are glad they decided to go with Rang De Basanti. Not to mention the amazing music, it took Rahman three years to complete the music for this movie. 

2. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara gave Spain tourism a hike of 65%. 

The movie about friendship and life by Zoya Akhtar has undergone a lot of changes to make it legendary. Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara is a case study now, as after it was released, Spain’s tourism was up by 65%. The Tomatina Festival, in the film, was shot off-season. To shoot the song, 16 tonnes of tomatoes were flown in from Portugal to Spain. 

3. Aamir Khan was supposed to appear in Om Shanti Om but he refused. 

Om Shanti om song Deewangi had almost everyone from Bollywood excluding Aamir Khan, as he refused to be part of it. The movie was inspired by an old classic thriller Madhumati. It was the first movie where Shah Rukh Khan flaunted his six-pack abs. As per reports, Hollywood pop star Shakira was supposed to make her debut in the film but things didn’t work out.

4. Dil Chahta Hai’s original trio was Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, and Akshaye Khanna.

The movie was a hit during its time. But did you know? The original trio for the movie was Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, and Akshaye Khanna. Also, the music in the movie was just perfect. Shankar Mahadevan came up with the iconic tune of ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ while brushing his teeth. 

5. Shah Rukh Khan was not the first choice for Raj Malhotra’s character.  

This one is considered the most iconic romantic film of Bollywood. The character Raj Malhotra was not given to Shah Rukh Khan at first. Saif Ali Khan & Tom Cruise were also approached for it. It’s hard to believe the king of romance was not the first choice. Aditya Chopra finished writing the films in a span of three to four weeks. 

6. Queen movie did not have a huge budget & Kangana was also a dialogue writer for the film. 

The movie was a hit and it ended up winning a lot of awards. Apart from acting Kangana also became a dialogue writer for the film to make it more realistic. She was also given credit for the additional dialogues. Though the movie was shot abroad Vikas Bahl did not have a great budget, he couldn’t even afford a vanity van for Kangana. 

7. After Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai was released Hrithik got many marriage proposals. 

It was a blockbuster of its time. Hrithik Roshan got a 30,000 marriage proposal after the film was released. Remember the traffic signal scene in the movie? That’s how Hrithik had met his ex-wife Sussanne Khan in IRL.  

8. Mughal-e-Azam is the most expensive film in Bollywood.  

The exceptional portrayal of love Mughal-e-Azam was the most expensive film of Bollywood. The famous song Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya was written 105 times before approval; it also cost a whopping 10 million to create this song.   

9. Rockstar was shot in reverse & Nargis didn’t know who Imtiaz Ali was or Ranbir Kapoor was.

Ranbir’s performance in Rockstar was great, but he was not Imtiaz Ali’s first choice. Nargis Fakhri, an American model, did not know how to speak Hindi. She had no idea who Imtiaz Ali was or Ranbir Kapoor was. The film was shot-reverse, meaning the ending was shot first, as they did not want to mess with Ranbir’s hairstyle.  

10. Kuch Kuch Hota Hai is based on the popular Archie comics. 

This iconic film was promised by Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol to Karan Johar when he was the assistant director on DDLJ. It was Karan Johar’s first directorial debut. Rani was 19 while shooting the film. The movie is based on the popular Archie comics. It was Kajol’s idea to add Tina’s death scene in the film.

11. The pregnancy scene from 3 Idiots was planned for Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.

The movie that talked about the struggles of engineering had many twists and turns. The role of Rancho was offered to Shah Rukh Khan. The much-talked pregnancy scene in the movie was supposed to be there in Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.   

12. Gangs of Wasseypur script was misplaced by Anurag Kashyap. 

This movie is considered iconic in the crime genre. But did you know? Vicky Kaushal was the assistant director of the film. The script of the movie along with Anurag Kashyap’s luggage was misplaced. The movie is based on the real-life rivalry between Surya Dev Singh & Shafiq Khan.  Anurag has spent his childhood at Sardar Khan’s house.  

13. Deepika Padukone learned Bengali for Piku.

The title Piku is a tribute to Satyajit Ray, the title is inspired by Ray’s short film Pikoo’s Diary. Irrfan Khan Dropped a Hollywood Film to Do Piku. Deepika Padukone is the second tallest actor Big B has worked with, the first was Tabu.  

14. Hera Pheri was titled Raftaar before it got changed. 

The cult comedy from Bollywood is loved by many of us even today. The movie was initially titled Raftaar. It is also a successful remake of a Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking. 

15. Devdas’s role was offered to Salman Khan first.

The role of Devdas was first offered to Salman Khan. The popular song Dola Re Dola took a week to write because Sanjay Leela Bhansali wanted it to be perfect.  

16. The climax of Lagaan was shot with a crowd of 10,000 people. 

Directed by Ashutosh Gowariker, Lagaan was a great film. The film was shot in Bhuj and before the worldwide release, Aamir Khan screened the film especially for the villagers first. The climax of Lagaan was shot with a crowd of 10,000 people. 

17. Kareena Kapoor wore 130 different dresses from all across the world in the film Heroine. 

Heroine is the story of a girl named Mahi and her journey in the film industry. The movie starring Kareena Kapoor had the most expensive outfits out of all the Bollywood films ever made. Kareena wore over 130 different outfits by top fashion designers from all over the world.

18. The role of Gabbar in Sholay was not given to Amjad Khan initially.

The iconic role of Gabbar that scared us as a kid, had its twists & turns. The actor Amjad Khan 

19. Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyon movie has the longest Hindi film song.

There is a song called  Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyon in the movie, it is considered the longest Hindi film song. The length of the song is 20 minutes and the song is played in three installments in the movie. 

20. Masaan was given numerous titles before it finally settled on the current one.

No doubt, Masaan is one of the greatest movies of Bollywood. The movie was approached to Manoj Bajpayee and Rajkumar Rao. It was given many titles like ‘Taap’, ‘Raand, Saand, Seedhi, Sanyaasi’ , ‘Duhera’,‘Ud jaayega’ and then finally named Masaan. 

Vicky Kaushal improvised the most important monologue, “Saala yeh dukh kahe khatam nahi“. He insisted on drinking alcohol & performed the entire scene. The film was not supposed to have any closure until Vicky cried while performing the scene & the makers decided to change the script. 

A movie goes through so many changes before it’s actually made.