When Farah Khan brought together 31 Bollywood superstars to write the song “Deewangi Deewangi” in “Om Shanti Om,” she created one of the most memorable ensemble shots in Hindi cinema. Features of Shanda Circuit Shah Rukh Khan Along with Dharmendra, Rekha, Jeetendra, Mithun Chakraborty, Shabana Azmi, Salman Khan, Saif Ali KhanRani Mukerji, Priyanka Chopra, Shilpa Shetty and several other stars. However, one notable absence is Amitabh Bachchanwho skipped filming because Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Getting married the same week.Looking back at the song, Farah once revealed why Amitabh Bachchan could not be a part of the song. “Amitabh Bachchan did not come for the shoot of the ‘Deewangi’ song as Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan are getting married in the same week,” she said in a chat with Pallavi Joshi on the official IFTDA YouTube channel not long ago. She then joked that while Amitabh had a genuine reason to miss the shoot, others in the industry had another reason to attend. “Right now, the industry isn’t called (to weddings), so they all come to shoot. So that’s good.”Amitabh isn’t the only celebrity who doesn’t feature in the song. Farah revealed that Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Aamir Khan also chose not to be involved. She told Film Companion, “We had more people lining up but some didn’t board the flight. Fardeen Khan was arrested at Dubai airport when he came to shoot for us. Aamir Khan refused to come. Dev Anand Sahab told me, ‘I don’t do a cameo’ and to salute him, he doesn’t do a cameo.”“Later, she shared the story behind Aamir Khan’s rejection on Manish Paul’s podcast. Farah said: “Aamir’s was the funniest. He kept me hanging and finally said he was editing Taare Zameen Par. I told him, ‘Come on, I’ll finish your shoot in two hours.'”She continued: “Then he called me and said, ‘Farrah, I’m editing. If I leave editing for two hours to shoot, my movie will be delayed six months.'” I said, “Please don’t come.” Later, when I asked him about it, he admitted, ‘I just don’t want to come.’ ‘”Farah also revealed Shah Rukh Khan had promised to bring Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu for the shoot, but the plan never materialized. “Shah Rukh was responsible for bringing Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu. I’m still waiting for them to come. He kept saying he would pick them up himself. I waited five or six days, but ultimately couldn’t extend the shoot any longer. ” she said.Farah said “Deewangi Deewangi” may be the last time the Hindi film industry truly comes together as a family. She divided the shoot into batches of six stars each day, and even after finishing their parts, many celebrities stayed to watch others perform and chat with friends.One of the song’s most beloved moments happened completely by accident. Recalling the scene, Farah said, “Salman jumping into Dharam Ji’s shot was not planned at all. He had finished shooting four hours earlier but stayed just to watch Dharam Ji perform. As we were rolling the camera, he suddenly jumped into the frame. And then Saif jumped in too. It was completely spontaneous.” However, coordinating 31 celebrities was not an easy task. It takes more effort than simply making a phone call, Farah said. “It’s not just phone calls. I have to visit everyone in person,” she explains.Designer Manish Malhotra was also instrumental in convincing many actresses to take part. As Farah recalled, “All the heroines were happy because Manish was designing their outfits and they had to keep them.” Shah Rukh Khan, meanwhile, made sure every guest felt valued. Farah revealed, “He gave everyone a luxury gift basket which included a TAG Heuer watch, a BlackBerry and other goodies. Each hamper is worth around 1 lakh rupees. They kept their costumes, received a lavish gift, and Mickey Contractor did everyone’s makeup. They certainly had a great time filming. Even Shabana Azmi called me personally and said, ‘I’m here. ‘”It was during the making of this song that Manish Malhotra and Rekha developed a close friendship. Recalling Farah’s vlogging experience, Manish said, “I met Rehaji there. It was the first time I was styling her. I loved her so much. She was mesmerizing.”Managing five or six superstars every day also led to unusual scenes on set. On The Kapil Sharma Show, Farah quipped: “This is probably the first time Shah Rukh has arrived on set on time in the morning.” She explained that since he was the producer, star and unofficial host, he had no choice but to stick to the schedule.Despite careful planning, a few hiccups arose. Shilpa Shetty’s portion had to be postponed as Farah was not happy with the look of her saree. Recalling the incident in Farah’s vlog, Shilpa said, “We had prepared everything but Farah didn’t like the length of the saree.”“I’m a perfectionist,” Farah admitted with a laugh.Shilpa added: “She canceled the shoot. Even Shah Rukh suggested that we shoot the next day. So I came back, we worked things out and Farah continued to work despite being pregnant with triplets. “Farah thanked her, saying: “You were only on screen for 10 to 15 seconds, but everyone remembers you. It was great to have you back. At the time, we were lucky enough to be able to shoot the next day.”She then teased the actor: “When I was pregnant, you showed off your waist. After giving birth to two children, it’s still the same waist!”Out of all the stars featured in the song, Rekha stands out for her professionalism. Farah revealed she was the only celebrity who insisted on rehearsing. “She came and rehearsed for three days. We kept thinking, ‘What the hell are we rehearsing with Rehaji?’ But she insisted. She came every day, wore her own sari, did her own makeup, and said, ‘At 3 p.m. sharp, I will come out. “Some people will be late, but not Rehaji.“If Rekha is the most punctual, then Govinda is the complete opposite. Farah recalled: “Govinda was 24 hours late. Everything is ready. His shot is ready. I called him and asked, “Kiki, where are you?” He replied, “I’m shooting in Dharavi.” I said, “But we are in Film City!” And he came the next day. “She also admitted that she was never confident in her choreography for Govinda. “I never had the guts to choreograph Govinda. His collaboration with Ganesh Acharya was so iconic that I felt nothing I could create would be better.” Farah also fondly remembers Mithun Chakraborty’s reaction when he arrived on the set. Speaking on Nasha Radio, she said: “People are going crazy for Mithun da. There was almost a stampede on the set.“She explained that technicians, gaffers and crew all rushed to the veteran actor because he was treated with respect. “I think he was the president of one of the workers’ associations and did a lot for them. People even gave their phones to Shah Rukh so that he could click their pictures with Mithunda.”
