Written by Salim-Javed and directed by Ramesh Sippy, Shaan was produced on a reported budget of Rs 6 crore – twice that of Sholay – making it the most expensive Indian film of its time. Despite its grand scale and strong opening, the revenge thriller turned out to be a box office disaster.
Amitabh Bachchan in Shaan
Sholay became the biggest blockbuster in the history of Indian cinema, shattering all box office records and surpassing legendary hits like Mother India and Mughal-e-Azam to emerge as the highest-grossing Indian film ever made. Naturally, this set an almost impossible benchmark for its director Ramesh Sippy. Determined to outdo himself, Sippy returned with a James Bond–style action thriller featuring eight superstars and the most expensive production in Bollywood history – Shaan.
The director even wanted to repeat the Sholay cast as he offered Shaan to Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Dharmendra, and Hema Malini. Apart from Big B, the other three rejected the films and their respective roles were taken up by Sunil Dutt, Shashi Kapoor, and Bindiya Goswami. Apart from these four heavyweights, Shaan also starred four other superstars – Raakhee Gulzar, Parveen Babi, Johnny Walker, and Kulbhushan Kharbanda.
Released on December 12, 1980 and written by Salim-Javed, Shaan was produced on a reported budget of Rs 6 crore – twice that of Sholay – making it the most expensive Indian film of its time. Despite its grand scale and strong opening, the revenge thriller failed to sustain momentum at the box office. Negative reviews led to poor word of mouth, which severely hurt its collections. Ultimately, Shaan earned just Rs 4.50 crore in India, turning out to be a box office disaster.
However, after its repeated re-runs on TV, the Ramesh Sippy directorial developed a cult following over the years. Shaan’s songs such as Yamma Yamma, Jaanu Meri Jaan, Pyaar Karne Wale, and Doston Se Pyar Kiya are still quite popular today. RD Burman was even nominated for the Best Music at the Filmfare Awards, which he lost to Laxmikant-Pyarelal for Karz. The movie ended up winning just one Filmfare Award for Best Cinematography to SM Anwar.
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