Renu revealed that Javed Akhtar wrote the film’s climax while Salim Khan penned the dialogues for Salman Khan.
Baghban was released in 2003. (Photo Credit: X)
Ravi Chopra’s Baghban, a star-studded family drama featuring Amitabh Bachchan, Hema Malini, Salman Khan, and Mahima Chaudhry, was a box-office hit. The audience was moved to tears by its dialogues and the sensitive plot. Recently, in an interview, Renu Chopra, the wife of Ravi Chopra, revealed how the celebrated screenwriter duo, Salim- Javed, known for films such as Don and Deewar, were involved in the project. Renu stated that Javed Akhtar wrote the film’s climax and Salim Khan penned the dialogues for Salman Khan.
In a conversation with Pinkvilla, Renu Chopra mentioned that Javed Akhtar wrote an entire 11-page speech for the climax, but on one condition, he did not want any credit for it. “He had never even seen the film,” Renu shared. While Javed Akhtar did not want credit back then, Renu believes she must acknowledge him now. She noted, “He did it out of love. And he would rather not take away from the person who wrote the rest of the film.” The rest of the scenes of Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini were written by BR Chopra with dialogues by Achala Nagar.
Furthermore, Renu recalled that after reading it, Amitabh Bachchan asked Ravi Chopra to give him three days, after which they would shoot the scene. Amitabh also told the filmmaker to set up as many cameras as he wanted since he knew he wouldn’t be able to recreate the feelings over and over again. So they positioned three cameras and began shooting. Renu remembered: “Amit ji said, ‘Mere andar bhara hua hai (It’s all inside me, bursting to come out.)”
Renu also stated that Baghban’s credit belonged to both Salim- Javed. She shared that while Javed Akhtar wrote the climax, Salim Khan wrote Salman Khan’s dialogues. She stated, “It was a Salim-Javed collaboration.”
During the same interview, Renu also noted that BR Chopra was initially against making Baghban stating it was out of date. Many people claimed that films such as Avtaar and Zindagi had previously tackled similar subjects. However, Ravi saw it not as a social drama, but as a love story between an elderly couple.
