Real story of Subhash Ghai. Subhash Ghai, Aishwarya Rai, Madhuri Dixit / Life Story

3000 girls were rejected for Pardes: When Amitabh left the set, Subhash Ghai stopped the film, Sanjay and Madhuri were made to sign a no-marriage contract

Director Subhash Ghai, who made excellent films like Dilip Kumar’s Saudagar, Sanjay Dutt’s Khalnayak, Anil Kapoor’s Meri Jung, Jackie’s Hero and Shahrukh’s Pardes, has turned 79 today. Through his films, Subhash gave many new faces like Jackie Shroff, Mahima Chaudhary, Manisha Koirala, Meenakshi Sheshadri a place in cinema.

At the same time, it would not be wrong to give Subhash Ghai the credit for polishing the skills of many actors like Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Shahrukh Khan. His films are known for luxurious sets, iconic characters and excellent climax. Subhash Ghai is as good a director as he is short-tempered. Sometimes in anger, he raised his hand on Salman Khan, and sometimes troubled Amitabh Bachchan with his demands. While many relationships were formed in his journey, he also had many disagreements due to his anger.

Today, on the special occasion of Subhash Ghai’s birthday, know the story of his struggles, along with selected anecdotes-

Story- 1

Had a fight with Salman, Salim Khan apologized

The fight between Subhash Ghai and Salman Khan is not a matter of 5-10 years. The beginning of the fight between the two started when Salman Khan was shooting for his first film Maine Pyar Kiya (1989). One day Subhash Ghai visited the set of that film. The director of the film, Sooraj Barjatya, was Subhash’s friend. As soon as Subhash Ghai saw the newcomer Salman Khan on the set, he said unhappily, how can this small, skinny boy become a hero.

Subhash Ghai’s loud voice reached Salman Khan’s ears, obviously he must have felt bad after hearing this. However, he was new at that time, so he could not say anything. Maine Pyar Kiya, released in 1989, was a huge hit, which gave Salman Khan stardom.

A few days after the release of the film, a party was held at Subhash Ghai’s house, in which Salman Khan had participated. Suddenly, both of them started arguing in that party. No one knew what the reason was, however, the matter got so heated up in that party that Salman slapped Subhash Ghai.

This was revealed in the year 2002, when Salman clarified about raising his hand on Aishwarya Rai. Salman had said in an interview, I never hurt others, I only hurt myself. Yes, but I have definitely hit Subhash Ghai. He hit me with a spoon, he almost broke the plate on my face. He even grabbed my throat. Then I lost my temper and raised my hand on him, but I apologized to him the very next day.

Subhash Ghai has also talked about this fight. He said in an interview, the very next day after the fight, Salman Khan came to apologize to me. He was standing in front of me like a child. I smiled at him and asked, what happened to you last night. He replied, I have come here because my father told me to do so. Subhash further asked, meaning you don’t have to apologize. Salman said, I have to apologize. In this way both of them reconciled.

After Salman’s apology, the two reconciled and then worked together in the 2008 film Yuvraj.

Story-2

When Amitabh Bachchan was waited for a week on the set

It was the year 1987, Amitabh Bachchan had signed the film Deva with Subhash Ghai. Deva was the biggest film being made at that time, in which the casting of Amitabh Bachchan was sure to make the film a superhit. The announcement of the film which started on a big budget was done in a big press conference.

Dilip Kumar clapping during the muhurat of Deva.

Finally, the shooting started on time. Amitabh Bachchan always reads his script and memorizes his dialogues before shooting. One day, while sitting in the makeup room, Amitabh Bachchan was reading the script when something struck him. He wanted to discuss that part with Subhash Ghai, so he told his assistant to go and call Subhash Ghai. As soon as the assistant came to Subhash and told him that, he replied, if Amitabh Bachchan wants to consult me, then tell him to come to my office.

Photo of Amitabh Bachchan taken during the muhurat shot of Deva.

As soon as the assistant told this to Amitabh, he got angry. Amitabh Bachchan asked his assistant to pack all his stuff and went straight home from the shoot. Despite Amitabh leaving the set, Subhash Ghai did not call him, nor did he try to contact him. The next day Subhash and his team waited on the set, but he did not come. This continued for about a week. Every day the set would be ready and everyone would wait for Amitabh, but they would be disappointed.

Amitabh Bachchan with Subhash Ghai on the sets of the film Deva.

When Subhash Ghai lost his patience, he called a press conference and announced that he was no longer making the film Deva with Amitabh. Subhash Ghai was so short-tempered that he never made the film Deva with any other hero.

Story- 3

When Subhash Ghai saw Madhuri’s picture, he offered her a film

Madhuri Dixit made her Bollywood debut with the 1984 film Abodh. This film could not do any wonders, but she got her next film Awara Baap. This film was shot in Kashmir.

At the same time, Subhash Ghai was also shooting for the film Karma in Kashmir. As soon as Madhuri came to know that Subhash Ghai was there, she sent a photo of herself through her hairdresser. Subhash liked Madhuri’s photo so much that he invited Madhuri to meet him. When Madhuri reached his set, she met choreographer Saroj Khan. Saroj asked her, will you dance? Madhuri agreed and gave a small dance performance there. Subhash Ghai liked Madhuri’s few seconds of dance so much that he immediately said, you should not do these small roles in films, you have talent. Then what, Subhash Ghai gave Madhuri work in the film Ram Lakhan, due to which Madhuri got recognition all over the country.

Subhash Ghai with Anil Kapoor and Madhuri on the sets of the film Ram Lakhan.

Story- 4

When Sanjay Dutt behaved rudely in a drunken state, Subhash Ghai slapped him

In 1982, Subhash Ghai cast Sanjay Dutt in his film Vidhaata along with Dilip Kumar, Shammi Kapoor, Amrish Puri and Padmini Kolhapuri. This was the time when Sanjay Dutt had just entered the industry and was always drunk. One day, Sanjay reached the sets of the film Vidhaata in a drunken state.

As soon as he saw Padmini Kolhapuri, he started talking rudely. Padmini got scared seeing Sanjay drunk and started leaving the set. As soon as this news reached Subhash Ghai, he tried to stop Padmini. When he asked Sanjay to apologize, Sanjay was not even in a condition to listen. Subhash Ghai got so angry that he slapped Sanjay in front of everyone on the set.

Story-5

Out of fear of Sanjay and Madhuri, he had signed a strange contract for Khalnayak

After Ram-Lakhan, Subhash Ghai cast Madhuri in the film Khalnayak. The hero of the film was Sanjay Dutt, while Madhuri was paired with Jackie Shroff. Before this film, Madhuri and Sanjay were together in the film Thanedaar. The closeness between the two grew on the sets of that film. After some time, their affair started being discussed in every newspaper and magazine. When Subhash Ghai cast Madhuri and Sanjay in the film Khalnayak, he was afraid that the two might get married before the film’s release. If the two had married before the film’s release, it would have directly affected Khalnayak, because Madhuri was with Jackie in the film.

Subhash Ghai was so worried about their closeness that he had them sign a strange contract. According to the contract, they were not allowed to get married before the film was released. They could get married only after the film was released. He also made Madhuri sign a no pregnancy bond. But the opposite happened. Before the film was released, Sanjay had to go to jail on charges of Bombay bomb blast. When Sanjay returned, Madhuri broke off her relationship with him for the sake of her image.

Story- 6

When Salman Khan was refused for Shahrukh Khan

The film Pardes, released in 1997, is one of the best films of Shahrukh Khan’s career, but there was a time when Salman Khan requested director Subhash Ghai to give him the role of Arjun in the film instead of Shahrukh. Subhash Ghai knew that only Shahrukh Khan would suit the role of Arjun in the film Pardes, so he refused Salman. He told Shahrukh that Arjun will have to control his emotions throughout the film, only you can do this role.

Subhash Ghai with Shah Rukh Khan on the sets of Pardes.

Story- 7

He rejected 3000 girls for Parde and liked Mahima at first sight

Madhuri Dixit had expressed her desire to play the role of Ganga in the film Pardes, but Subhash Ghai had already cast her in 3 films. He wanted to launch a new and innocent face through the film. Subhash Ghai auditioned about 3 thousand girls for the new face, but he did not like any girl. Meanwhile, he happened to go to a program. Mahima Chaudhary was a VJ of a music channel at that time, who had participated in that program. Subhash Ghai decided as soon as he saw her that she would play the role of Ganga in Pardes. Initially, the film Pardes was to be named Ganga, but later the title was changed. Let us tell you that Mahima Chaudhary received the Filmfare Award for Best Debut Female for this film.

Photo taken during the shooting of Pardes.

A look at the film journey of Subhash Ghai-

When he came to Mumbai to become a hero, he was not allowed to enter many studios

Subhash Ghai was born on 24 January 1945 in Nagpur, Maharashtra. After graduating in commerce from Rohtak, Subhash Ghai took admission in Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. In an interview given to Rajya Sabha TV, he told that he had come to Bombay (now Mumbai) with the dream of becoming a hero, but he was thrown out of many studios. After this, he read Dale Carnegie’s book How to Win Friends and Influence People. With the help of that book, Subhash Ghai first made some friends and then he also got acquainted with people associated with the industry.

Subhash with Aishwarya Rai on the sets of the film Taal.

Entered a talent contest with Rajesh Khanna, won among 5000 people

When Subhash Ghai got the news of United Producers Filmfare Talent Contest to be held in Mumbai, he himself participated in it. He made it to the top-3, leaving behind about 5000 people. Rajesh Khanna and Dheeraj Kumar were also among those who made it to the top 3 along with him. Rajesh Khanna got the film immediately after winning, while Subhash Ghai had to wait for a long year to get the film Takdeer.

Subhash Ghai entered the film industry as an actor with the 1967 film Taqdeer, but his film failed to do anything special. After this, he got the role of Rajesh Khanna’s friend in the 1969 superhit film Aradhana. He also played lead roles in 1970 films like Umang and Gumraah, but he never got recognition as an actor.

Subhash Ghai with Dilip Kumar at the success party of the film Saudagar.

He became director on the recommendation of Shatrughan Sinha

When NN Sippy decided to make the film Kalicharan in 1976, Subhash Ghai got the opportunity to direct the film on the recommendation of Shatrughan Sinha. The producer wanted Dilip Kumar to be the hero in the film, but Subhash Ghai made Shatrughan Sinha the hero to return the favor. This film made Shatrughan Sinha and Reena Roy stars. Subhash Ghai further established his place in the industry by directing films like Karz, Krodhi, Vishwanath. Subhash Ghai was given the first Filmfare Best Director Award for the 1991 film Saudagar.

Further Subhash Ghai gave excellent films like Hero, Karma, Meri Jung, Ram Lakhan, Khalnayak, Pardes, Taal, Aitraaz, Yaadein.

History created through the film Taal

Subhash Ghai started a film insurance policy during the shooting of the film Taal. Through this, he started the concept of getting films produced through banks, which continues even today.

Gave the Oscar winning song Jai Ho to AR Rehman with his advice

A.R. Rahman had told in an interview that the word Jai Ho for the Oscar winning song Jai Ho was suggested to him by Subhash Ghai. On his advice, A.R. Rahman first composed the song Jai Ho for the film Yuvraj, although this song was later used in the film Slumdog Millionaire. A.R. Rahman won an Oscar for this song.

Wrote and directed 16 films, 13 were hits

Subhash Ghai wrote and directed about 16 films in his career, out of which 13 films were hits. This is the reason why many people still call Subhash Ghai the second showman of Hindi cinema after Raj Kapoor. He has also been given the National Award for the best film made on a social issue for the film Iqbal.

Subhash Ghai is soon going to make a film on Osho’s life

At the Cannes Film Festival 2018, Subhash Ghai announced that he will soon co-produce a film on Osho with an Italian producer. This film will be directed by Lankesh Sukameli. Apart from this, Subhash Ghai is the owner of Mumbai’s acting school Whistling Woods International Institute. This school is one of the 10 best acting schools in the world.

Full video: