Veteran actress, Mumtaz used to call Rajesh Khanna as ‘Kaka’. He used to fondly address her as ‘Moti’. Both of them did nine movies together, and all of them were hits. One of their cult classic films was Do Raaste. Their jodi was a hit by the grace of God, and Rajesh was always Mumtaz’s favourite co-star. ‘Kaka’ was called the first superstar of the country and was known to cast his spell on women. Now, veteran actor, Govardhan Asrani, once revealed how during the premiere of Do Raaste, ‘Kaka’ took 40 minutes to reach the stage as coins were thrown at him.
When Asrani shared how Rajesh Khanna at the Do Raaste press screening took 40 minutes to come on the stage
Rajesh Khanna was one of those stars whose female fans were unmatched. A page dedicated to the actor that went by the name, Rajesh Khanna- the king of superstardom shared an interview with veteran star, Asrani. He shared once, remembering witnessing the premiere of Do Raaste at Metro cinema. All eight producers of United Producers Council, Raj Khosla, J Om Prakash, FC Mehra, Mohan Sehgal, Nasir Hussain, Shakti Samanta, Pramod Chakravarthy and Hemant Kumar – suited and booted stood waiting to welcome Kaka. Asrani shared:
“There were swelling crowds outside and a full house inside. There was pandemonium when he arrived. As though God had arrived. The suited filmmakers were pushed aside. The crowds from the streets barged into the theatre. There was lathi charge amongst cries of “Rajesh Khanna, Rajesh Khanna” Everyone wanted to touch him. It took him 40 minutes to reach the stage. When the song Bindiya Chamkegi was played, there were whistles and coin throwing. He was whisked away even before the screening was complete.”
When Asrani shared that Rajesh Khanna had a superiority complex
Govardhan Asrani, who had a career in Bollywood for like five decades, worked with Kaka in many movies like Namak Haram, 1973. Asrani revealed that Kaka had a superiority complex and just liked people who had good words to tell about him. It was in 2012 when Rajesh passed away from cancer. During an old interview with Filmfare, Asrani shared:
“I worked with Rajesh in Hrishida’s Namak Haram (1973). He was paired opposite Amitabh Bachchan (the duo had worked in Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Anand 1971), who had a string of flops behind him including Sanjog, Bandhe Haath, Bansi Birju… Zanjeer (1973) had not released then. There was a basic courtesy between the two but Rajesh suffered from a superiority complex. He believed ‘no one can shake me. I am too powerful’. Throughout the film there was palpable tension between the two.”
Asrani, in his Bollywood career, did more than 350 movies and is best known for his role as a jailer in Sholay (1975. The actor made a tremendous mark with the movie. He was then seen in more than 25 movies with Rajesh Khanna between 1972 to 1991. Both of them worked in movies like Bawarchi (1972), Badhti Ka Naam Dadhi (1974), Aap Ki Kasam (1974), and Ajnabee (1974). Both Asrani and Rajesh were always known for their powerful screen presence and the types of roles.
What do you think of Rajesh Khanna’s fandom during the premiere of Do Raaste?
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