31 Years Of Mr. India- Some Facts About The Movie

On May 29, 1987, Shekhar Kapur’s directorial venture ‘Mr India’ got released which turned out to be revolutionary as far as sci-fi films in Indian cinema are concerned. Yes, this Anil Kapoor and Sridevi starrer is touted as the first sci-fi film in Bollywood, which introduced many special effects to Indian audiences.

* Amitabh Bachchan as Mr India"Initially, Salim-Javed were supposed to produce Mr.India with Amitabh Bachchan. There was even talk that Ramesh Sippy was considering it, but he felt it was too expensive for a single-hero project. In fact, Javed saab was the one who suggested Shekhar's name, and we all decided to go ahead."

* Sridevi's look in Jaanbaaz"For the song 'Kaate Nahin Kat Te', we got an elaborate outfit designed for Sri, but I changed my mind. I had seen her chiffon saree look in 'Jaanbaaz', and Feroz Khan had picturised it fabulously. So, I told Shekhar Kapur, 'Can we better that song?' I wanted everything to be handled aesthetically. Also, all that you see in the film was shot in real-time. From the special effects to the fight sequences, nothing was done in post."

* Salim-Javed's last film together"When the script was narrated to me, we didn't have the villain's track, that was reworked later. It so happened that Pramod Chakravorty (director of films like Love in Tokyo and Dream Girl) had a mahurat planned with Amitabh Bachchan for some film. Somehow, he couldn't reach the event, and Amitabh's recorded voice was played on the speaker. That's where they got the seed of the idea and then, they worked on the script. Unfortunately, they (Salim-Javed) parted, and I think this was their last released film as co-writers, but actually, they had worked on the structure way before I started shooting."

* Amrish Puri's casting"Those days, superhero films like Superman and Batman were gaining popularity here, and Shekhar wanted something on those lines which was larger than life. Almost every villain in the industry wanted to do this part. Javed saab said that his takia kalam would be 'Mogambo khush hua' and we all jumped at it. He even predicted that the line will be remembered for as long as film industry exists. The challenge was to create the aura that 'Sholay's' Gabbar (Singh, played by Amjad Khan) had, or come as close. While we had auditioned a couple of actors, Amrish Puri was at the back of my mind as 'Hum Paanch' had just catapulted his villainous stature in the industry."

* Anil Kapoor’s iconic jacket and hat were sourced from a local Mumbai market. Every morning, the kids would line-up on the sets and give Sridevi a peck on the cheek. In between shots, Sanjay Kapoor and the kids would gang up to play a round of cricket. Howzat! Kids in the cast who grew up to be notable faces include actors Aftab Shivdasani and Karan Nath, and ace choreographer Ahmad Khan.Ahmad was clearly the best dancer among the kids and even Sridevi used to rehearse her "Hawa Hawai" steps with him.