When Amitabh Bachchan Reacted To Proposal Of Mughal-E-Azam Remake Ft Aishwarya Rai, Abhishek, Jaya, And Himself

Filmmaker Mehul Kumar recounted a South Indian producer’s interest in remaking the 1960 film Mughal-E-Azam with the Bachchan family, with Amitabh as Akbar, Abhishek as Salim, Jaya as Jodha Bai and Aishwarya Rai as Anarkali. Kumar advised against it, believing a remake could never match the original’s historical impact. Read to know Amitabh Bachchan’s reaction.

The Bachchan family (ANI Photo)

Hyderabad: In the 1960 film Mughal-E-Azam, Prithviraj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar portrayed Emperor Akbar and Salim respectively, setting a notable standard for depicting toxic father-son relationships in cinema. This dynamic has left an influential mark on Bollywood, prompting several attempts to recreate that film. When a South Indian producer decided to remake this movie, believing that a film of such magnitude needed an exceptional cast. So he thought of casting the entire Bachchan family to bring the narrative to life.

Filmmaker Mehul Kumar recently recounted an intriguing conversation he had with the south producer regarding this remake proposal. During an interview with a YouTube channel, Kumar mentioned that a prominent producer from the south reached out to him, expressing interest in remaking Mughal-E-Azam and wanting to feature Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai, and Abhishek Bachchan as part of the cast. Although Kumar did not mention the producer’s name, he revealed they intended to cast Amitabh Bachchan in the role of Emperor Akbar, Jaya Bachchan as Jodha Bai, Abhishek Bachchan as Salim, and Aishwarya Rai as Anarkali.

Kumar recalled, “I told them that Mughal-E-Azam can’t be remade. You are making a proposal but this proposal won’t fly because people will compare it with the original film. Because that one was such a historical film.” Following this, the producer contacted Amitabh to convey Kumar’s views, to which Amitabh said that Kumar had a valid point.

Mughal-E-Azam, directed by K Asif, featured Madhubala, Dilip Kumar, and Prithviraj Kapoor in key roles, leaving an unforgettable mark in Indian cinema. In light of this history, Kumar believed that a remake could not possibly capture the same essence or impact for viewers.

In the 1990s, Kumar supported Amitabh Bachchan during a challenging phase in the actor’s career as he sought to regain his comeback in films. Kumar directed the 1997 film Mrityudaata specifically for Amitabh, although it failed at the box office. Reflecting on this period during the YouTube interview, Kumar shared that Amitabh approached him during the music launch of the film Rangeela, asking for a “garma-garam” script to revive his career.