"I was always on tenterhooks and scared [during the making of 'Silsila' because it was real life coming into reel life. Jaya is his wife, and Rekha is his girlfriend; the same story is going on. Anything could have happened because they are working together." - Yash Chopra
As actress Rekha's biographer, I must confess that Silsila never stops fascinating me. Why? Because it did what no tabloid or whisper ever could: it gave cinematic form to an association that lived only in the public's imagination. Think about it, without Silsila, there would be no boldly filmed, dripping in double meanings-Rang Barse, no poetic confession of love by Amitabh-Rekha in Yeh Kahan Aa Gaye Hum, and definitely no ice-cold face-off between Jaya and Rekha where the wife coolly tells the lover, "I will win." So meta! Isn't that wild?
It's been over four decades, and Silsila still holds its place as a pop culture legend that dared to blur the line between reel and real. What was really unfolding behind the scenes of one of the most audacious casting coups in Hindi cinema history?
In the early '70s, Rekha faced harsh body shaming-mocked for her skin tone and broken Hindi. But she fought back, reinventing herself through sheer hard work, becoming a skilled actor and fitness icon. On Simi Garewal's talk show, she credited her transformation to Amitabh Bachchan, whose intense professionalism during Do Anjaane (1976) deeply inspired her. Ever since the making of Do Anjaane in the mid-'70s, whispers of Amitabh and Rekha's off-screen equation began lighting up film magazines, and nearly fifty years later, the legend still refuses to fade.
In the early 1980s, Rekha was at her peak as a leading actress. She had arrived as a respected actress and a box-office sensation who had A-list producers queuing up to sign her. Rekha was now constantly in the news for her beautiful cover shots, her fitness routine, and her elusive lover. While Amitabh Bachchan had excommunicated the media from his life, it was Rekha who dedicatedly kept him alive in gossip columns and industry news.
In 1980, two of Amitabh's big films, Ram Balram (1980) and Do Aur Do Paanch (1980), turned out to be box office debacles. He then pinned his hopes on Dostana (1980), which, to his despair, didn't bring the relief he was looking for. The media had begun prophesying the doom of the star, whom they believed had lost that special touch that made his films invincible at the box office.
Celebrated film director-producer, the late Yash Chopra's last film, the ambitious multi-starrer, Kaala Patthar (1979), hadn't performed as well as he had expected. He wanted a blockbuster as his next film. This ambition gave birth to the idea of Silsila.
Amitabh immediately agreed to do the film, which was based on a love triangle. But Yash Chopra had bigger plans for Silsila. He suggested that Rekha be cast to play the role of the girlfriend. The film media reported that despite his promise to Jaya that he would never work with Rekha again, Amitabh agreed! An announcement appeared in trade papers, and the film instantly became the talk of the town. People were absolutely shocked. But in a dramatic twist, a few months later, Rekha quietly bowed out and returned the signing amount, leaving everyone guessing.
Yash Chopra now had a hero and an ambitious film, but nothing else.
Reluctantly, Yash Chopra again began the hunt for female leads. At first, Padmini Kolhapure was signed to play the character of the "other woman", and Poonam Dhillon's name was being mulled over for the role of the wife. But this casting did not please Yash; it wasn't what he had imagined for the film. Thereafter, he signed Parveen Babi as Rekha's replacement and Smita Patil as the betrayed wife. The cast in place, the first shoot of the film was scheduled in Kashmir.
Despite the film being on course, Yash Chopra's heart was ill at ease. This was not the blockbuster cast he had hoped for. There was no selling point, nothing that would make the audience sit up and take notice. Yash wanted to grab headlines, but the Amitabh Bachchan-Parveen Babi-Smita Patil ensemble just did not have the edge that would send gossip columns into a tizzy. What Yash truly wanted seemed an impossible ask. In a memorable TV interview of Yash Chopra, his last before he died, with Shah Rukh Khan, the latter remarked: "It was one of the most interesting, one of the biggest, one of the most challenging casts in a film ever done in the history of Indian cinema."
How did it come about?
While Amitabh was shooting for Tinu Anand's Kaaliya (1981) in Srinagar, Yash Chopra flew down to meet him. On the night of 21 October 1980, they met over dinner. Yash shared in his interview to Shah Rukh Khan, "After everyone [had] gone out of the room, he [Amitabh Bachchan] comes to me [and asks], 'Are you sure with the casting of the film? Are you happy?' I said I am not happy. Bachchan asked, 'You tell me honestly ki aapko kya lagta hai iski ideal casting kya hai (Tell me honestly what you feel the ideal casting for this film is)'."
This gave Yash the opening he was hoping for. Yash said he wanted Rekha for the role of the other woman and Jaya to play the wife. Apparently, Yash threw in some bait and promised Amitabh a memorable film if he got the leading ladies of his life to play the leading ladies in this story. This was the first time in Indian cinema that the central plot revolved around an extramarital relationship. It deserved a cast that was capable of creating ripples at the box office.
Amitabh mulled over the suggestion for five minutes. He then suggested they go back to Bombay. Instead of asking her himself, Amitabh said Yash should persuade his wife, Jaya, to come on board. The next day, 22 October, both left for Bombay; there was a tense silence throughout the flight. Things were not going to be easy.
Reminiscing about the chaos created by the casting hassles, the script writer of the film, Sagar Sarhadi, had told me during the research of my book Rekha The Untold Story, "Jaya had extracted the promise from Amitabh that he would never work with Rekha. This was confirmed. Industry knew it. People knew it. This was a strange dharam sankat (moral dilemma)."
Jaya and Rekha both had to be brought onboard, despite the former being dead set against the idea of her husband working with the latter. How, then, was Jaya persuaded to work in the same film with the other two? How did Silsila become Jaya's much-awaited comeback? And how was Rekha lured back into the film?
Jaya, expectedly, was extremely reluctant to star in this film. In fact, it took much coaxing and cajoling to get her around to even listen to the story. All through the narration, Jaya sat unmoved, looking neither interested nor impressed. Till the climax. It is said that it was the last scene that did the trick and moved Jaya to accept the role. 109 The climax of Silsila was a banal nuptial reunion: an unconscious Jaya lay on a hospital bed, doctors and nurses frantically trying to revive her. Just then, Amitabh entered and asked them to leave the room, saying, "I know what the matter is, the remedy, leave us." When alone, he places his palm lovingly on her forehead and gently takes her hand in his. He murmurs affectionately, 'Shobha, I have come back to you, forever.' At this, Jaya slowly opens her eyes and weakly says, 'I knew you would come back to me. It is a moment that signified the victory of vishwaas over pyaar.
One is tempted to speculate about the resonance these words and sentiments would have had for Jaya. Perhaps this role, through which Jaya could both make a strong moral statement and help Amitabh's flailing career, seemed a good enough reason to re-enter films. Popular film magazine Super did a cover story titled "Jaya is Back!" It said, "Yash, whose dilemma of casting was fast exceeding human endurances, must've slept well for the first night in months on October 23rd, the happy day when Jaya agreed to his desperate, last measure request. Yash confessed, 'I had a tough time getting her into the film.'"
Sagar Sarhadi told me, "It was decided... to explain everything to Jaya, because otherwise, this film couldn't be made. The compromise was that Jayaji was asked to do Smita Patil's role, and her permission was sought before signing Rekha." Rekha herself did not hesitate to block a few months of her shooting schedule for Silsila. An unspoken tension and competition had always existed between Jaya and Rekha. Jaya had always been one up as far as acting was concerned. With Rekha, the reigning actress in the industry, now being pitched against her, a pronounced battle was expected to follow.
In characteristic scandalous fashion, Rekha later revealed in a Movie magazine (May 1987) interview, "I have learnt to use all the insults and barbs thrown at me to my advantage... Until you're provoked, you don't realise your real value. The biggest contribution of this person in my life, for which I will remain eternally indebted to her, is that she taught me that no matter what happens, you should never give up your career. She is a living example of how you suffer if you do... Watching her, I've learnt not to be a hypocrite. That is why I am not a so-called martyr." It was clear to everyone whom Rekha was referring to.
Thus, the greatest Bollywood "casting coup" was achieved. Amitabh, Jaya and Rekha were to essay the lead roles for Silsila. It caused quite a stir in the industry -- no surprises there. While some were praising Yash Chopra for making the impossible happen, others used the opportunity to target Amitabh. His rival and former superstar Rajesh Khanna referred to the happening as "a height of desperation".
Regardless of the gossip, the cast and team of Silsila left for Kashmir.
"As artists, we were acting out a story written for us; the rest existed in the imagination of the press and those who believe whatever's written in the magazines."-Jaya Bachchan
The shooting of Silsila began in Kashmir. It was an extremely private affair. No media were invited; no friends were permitted. Yash Chopra had to be very careful. He is said to have had to keep the two women as far away from each other as possible to avoid any clashes. Every scene had to be manoeuvred with precision. Later, he said in a BBC Asia interview (August 2010), "I was always on tenterhooks and scared because it was real life coming into reel life. Jaya is his wife, and Rekha is his girlfriend; the same story is going on. Anything could have happened because they are working together."
Coming from someone of Yash Chopra's stature, this statement can't be taken lightly. He said, clearly and directly, that the Rekha-Amitabh relationship existed not only in gossip columns but in reality, too. Yash talked about it again in his famous interview with Shah Rukh Khan. He told Shah Rukh, "Before I started [shooting] the film, maine dono ko alag alag bola -- ikattha milna toh mushkil hi tha for obvious reasons -- ki yaar dekho tum meri dost ho, tum meri picture mei kaam kar rahe ho dosti mei. Yaar mere set pe koi gadbadi mat karna yaar. Dono ne mujhe surety dilai bilkul problem nahi hogi. (Before I started shooting the film, I told them both separately - it was difficult to meet them together for obvious reasons - that you are my friend, you are acting in my film out of
friendship. Please don't do anything controversial on my set. Each assured me that
there would be no problems.) And they didn't give me trouble."
According to script writer Sagar Sarhadi, Rekha, as a rule, tried to avoid Jaya by timing her exits with Jaya's entries. However, at times, all three, Amitabh, Jaya and Rekha, were forced to come together to shoot. When this happened, they would sit separately, like strangers, without communicating and wear blank expressions. One wouldn't believe this upon watching the film; each actor's performance shines brilliantly. This speaks volumes about the talent of the cast.
Among the many intense scenes, there was one in which Rekha and Jaya came face to face, and a dramatic verbal exchange took place between them. This scene was probably scripted to cash in on the well-known tension between the actresses. The tussle between matrimony and extra-marital love, and between faith and passion, forms the core of this scene. Jaya, the quintessential wife wearing red, asked Rekha, in pristine white, to leave her husband, for she knew that her faith in their marriage would triumph over all else. At this, Rekha quipped, "Aap apne vishwaas ke saath rahiye, mujhe mere pyaar ke saath rehne dijiye (You hold on to your faith, let me hold on to my love)."
It should be unsurprising that the friction depicted in this scene rubbed off on interactions during and after filming. The silence maintained by the man in the middle of the conflict was steadfast and absolute, but the women, in ways subtle and obvious, spoken and unspoken, conveyed their distaste for each other. The stories surrounding Silsila are of as much, if not more, interest as the plot of the film itself. The embargo on the press couldn't stop gossip from flooding magazine pages. The scandal-hungry film media of the time had a field day with Silsila. While countless rumours buzzed through Bollywood corridors, one story about the making of the film actually got published.
The story, 'Inside the Making of Silsila' (Cine Blitz, August 1981), spilt some truly dramatic details. The climax scenes were being shot at Film City. Sanjeev Kumar was caught in a fire, and Rekha was to rush to rescue her on-screen husband. While the final cut did not include this scene, the original shot had Jaya holding Rekha back, pushing her away from the fire, while Amitabh went ahead to rescue Sanjeev Kumar. Just before the first take, Rekha apparently went to the cameraman and told him that she would only do one take for the scene, and no more: "Whether you get the shot okay or not, I won't be bothered. I will be quitting the moment the first take is over."
The camera started rolling. Jaya pushed Rekha. But along with Rekha, Jaya also moved out of the frame by mistake. Rekha realised that the shot hadn't gone well, but unconcerned, she left the set. "As the entire unit stood there stunned, Amitabh, who was relaxing in his chair, looked sternly at Jaya and nodded curtly, as if to ask accusingly, 'So you did something?' Understanding this, Jaya, like an innocent child, said in self-defence, 'I didn't do anything. I didn't say anything to her.'" Jaya reportedly stood there with tears in her eyes.
The same report also had this anecdote: For a certain sequence, Jaya was required to cry, so she asked for some glycerin. Surprised that an actress of Jaya's calibre should need glycerin, senior unit members reportedly asked her, "Jayaji kya aap ko bhi glycerin ki zaroorat hai? (Jayaji, do you really need glycerin?)" To this she retorted, "Itna ro chuki hoon ki ab aur rone ke liye aansoon hi nahin bache hain (I've cried so much already that I have no tears left)."
Another interesting incident happened during the dubbing of the film. Rekha went to Raj Kamal Studio but before she started dubbing, she asked to be shown the songs from the film. After seeing her songs, she asked, "Baki ke gaane kahan hain? (What about the other songs?)" The unit members were reluctant to show Rekha Jaya's songs, but she insisted, saying, "Unke gaane toh hum zaroor dekhnege. Uske bina to aaj dubbing ka mood nahin banne wale hai. (I will definitely see her songs. Without that, I won't be able to do the dubbing.)" When she noticed that the unit members were still reluctant, she added, "Arre bhai leke to aao. Agar unka kaam nahi dekhenge to kinka dekhenge? (Get her songs. If not hers, then whose work will I see?)"
At this point, they had to bring in the reels of Jaya's songs. As the songs were being screened, Rekha kept passing remarks. Years after Silsila, Rekha said in a Movie (Oct 1994) interview, "How can anybody compare Jayaji and me when it comes to glamour? It is like Mehmood trying to be Dilip Kumar. How can you even think of it?"
Silsila was the first major mainstream movie to deal with the subject of extramarital affairs. In a way, it engaged in a dialogue on love, marriage and destiny. Shobha (Jaya) was engaged to Shekhar Malhotra (Shashi Kapoor), a squadron leader with the Indian Air Force. Shekhar's brother, Amit (Amitabh Bachchan), was a playwright based in Delhi, whose heart was set on the attractive Chandni (Rekha). All was well in the lives of the couple till Shekhar died in air combat, leaving a pregnant Shobha behind. Amit stepped in as her saviour and married Shobha. Chandni was laconically informed about the turn of events in a letter, and heartbroken, she went on to marry Sanjeev Kumar.
Clearly, the two married couples in the film were not united by love, but by circumstances and responsibilities. Chandni and Amit were ill at ease in their respective marriages, and when fate brought them face to face some time later, they realised that they still loved each other and started having an affair.
However, the culmination of an extra-marital affair in marriage would probably not have found the approval of audiences in India. In a Bollywood film dealing with secret liaisons and adultery, there is little hope for love to triumph. A string of events led to a rather banal reconciliation between Amit and Shobha. Matrimony was granted supremacy over love. Traditions, morals and virtues were upheld. The movie ended up becoming a silsila (affair) of compromises, just like the lead actors' real lives were rumoured to be.
Silsila was released on 29 July 1981. The opening was stupendous, but the momentum couldn't be sustained, and it flopped, leaving everyone surprised. Many say the film was ahead of its time, that the audience was unripe for such a story. But ironically, according to Yash Chopra, the fault was in the selection of the cast. "The casting went wrong. People expected the real-life story on screen. There were too many expectations," he said after the film flopped.
Rumours of affairs and scandals usually start as whispers in gossip columns, and then build into a loud media buzz before they die away, forgotten. The Amitabh-Rekha association would also have had the same fate were it not for Silsila. The film gave people visuals of an affair they had been imagining and talking about; it embedded the story in public memory. To date, most media reports and features on the fabled affair are accompanied by visuals picked out from the film.
Silsila forever chiselled the Amitabh-Rekha-Jaya triangle into the public conscience.