Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt has been a celebrated name in the Indian film industry. Responsible for some of the most iconic films in Hindi cinema such as Arth and Saaransh, the veteran director spoke to Radio Nasha about his 1986 hit film Naam. In the conversation, Mahesh Bhatt shared how the film was like a dream come true for him as it marked his association with Salim Khan. He even praised Nutan and shared how Sanjay Dutt came on board for the project. Sharing all these details, Mahesh added that Dilip Kumar was the initial choice for the lead role in Naam, but the actor turned down the film due to money issues.
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Talking about Naam and working with Salim Khan, Mahesh Bhatt said, “I loved Naam especially because I worked with Salim Khan sir, he was an extraordinary limb of that film. He was going through a lean phase due to the Salim-Javed split, and was looking for a film that could get him that kind of acclaim. Rajendra Kumar sahab decided to make this film, Sanju (Sanjay Dutt) had returned from the US after getting rid of his drug addiction and he had that hunger because he felt he had let his father down, so he wanted to prove himself. When all authentic needs are met, something great happens. The major locomotive of Naam was Salim sahab.”
He even praised Kumar Gaurav and Nutan for their contribution to the film and said, “Kumar Gaurav was outstanding in the film, and Sanju’s performance stands in the film because of him. Nutanji was like a gift to the film, she was something else. Even if the shift started at 9:30 am, she would arrive at 7 am to prepare alone for the role, that was a different kind of discipline. She was an outstanding actor.”
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Sharing an incident where Salim Khan wanted Dilip Kumar on board for Naam, he shared, “We had reached very close to having Dilip Kumarji on board. Mushir-Riaz (producer duo) had approached us and the conversations had started too. Those days due to some price negotiations, their equations had gotten very personal. Salim sahab wanted Dilip sahab to do the film so he asked me to check with him, I called him and he said, ‘I do not mean any disrespect, I am not someone who would dodge dates and keep pushing the meeting, the problem is that Mushir is very stingy when it comes to money, his hands don’t go into his pocket easily.’ Due to money negotiations, things couldn’t materialize.”
Naam had received acclaim from critics and was even nominated for several awards back then.
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