Snip story

Anupam Kher could have been one of the actors in filmmaker Kundan Shah’s Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro but his scenes ended up on the cutting room floor.

At a session remembering actor Om Puri and director Kundan Shah at the ongoing Jio MAMI 19th Mumbai Film Festival, the people associated with the cult 1983 film revisited memorable behind-the-scene stories. Puri died in January this year while Shah passed away earlier this month.

Disco killer

Satish Kaushik, who wrote the dialogues and also featured in the film, revealed Kher played a villain, Disco Killer, but the part was not included in the final edit of the movie. “There was a character called ‘Disco Killer’. It was played by Anupam Kher. He had an eyesight problem, so he shoots at a man but it hits a mango. When he is told that a mango fell, he laughs and says, ‘Next time when I aim for a mango, a man will fall’. “

Filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra, who was the production controller on the film, said he was the one to break the news to Kher.”I told Anupam, ‘Your role is cut’. He said, ‘Please, don’t cut it too much’. I said, ‘No, it has been cut’. He asked, ‘How much of it has been cut?’ I told him ‘The entire role has gone from the film’,” Chopra said. Director Vijay Krishna Acharya, who helmed Dhoom 3, began his career as an assistant to Kundan Shah on Kabhi Ha Kabhi Na. He revealed that Kher almost cried when he got to know that he was no longer a part of Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro.

When Vidhu Vinod Chopra acted

Apart from being the production controller, Chopra also doubled up as Dushaasan in the Mahabharata scene, which is considered to be one of the major highlights of the movie. Chopra revealed that he was never meant to be in the film and it was purely accidental.

“There was an actor I selected for the role and had agreed to pay him Rs 500 for the four-day shoot. He thought it was Rs 500 per day. Just before shooting, he wanted Rs 2,000. I tried to bargain — take 1,500 or 1,000, but he didn’t agree,” Chopra said. Then the costume came and I was like, ‘give it to me’.”  When Chopra appeared in costume, Shah was aghast. “I told him, just shoot. I am saving you Rs 2,000,” Chopra added.  — PTI