Dharmendra’s Rejected Roles That Transformed Amitabh Bachchan A Superstar

Dharmendra was one of the leading Bollywood actors in the 1970s. During these years, he turned down several projects, including three major blockbusters that contributed to Amitabh Bachchan’s rise to superstardom. (Image: IMDb)

Reportedly, the roles offered to Dharmendra, eventually went to Bachchan and turned to be a defining moment in Bachchan’s career. The three films are: (Image: IMDb)

Zanjeer: Reportedly, Dharmendra declined the film for emotional reasons. One of his cousin sisters allegedly opposed Dharmendra working with the filmmaker Prakash Mehra, even threatening self-harm. The film later went to Amitabh Bachchan. It became a massive hit, establishing Amitabh Bachchan as the ‘angry young man’. (Image: IMDb)

Don: The cult film was rejected by the Bollywood’s He-Man. Dev Anand and Jeetendra also rejected the film before Amitabh Bachchan agreed to take on the iconic role, Don. (Image: IMDb)

Shaan: Following the success of Sholay, Ramesh Sippy wanted to repeat the same cast for his next project. However, a disagreement with Dharmendra led Sippy to seek another actor for the role. Shaan went on to become a huge success at the box office, solidifying Amitabh Bachchan’s position in Hindi cinema. (Image: IMDb)

Additionally, in Sholay, Amitabh Bachchan was not the first choice for Jai, Dharmendra personally recommended the young and struggling Bachchan to director Sippy. Amitabh Bachchan, who often visited the Dharmendra’s film sets, impressed the senior actor with his deep voice, quite confidence and raw intensity. Seeing his potential, Dharmendra persuaded Sippy to cast him. The duo’s camaraderie, particularly the iconic “Yeh Dosti” scenes, became legendary. (File Photo)

Dharmendra’s last screen appearance will be Ikkis, directed by Sriram Raghavan and featuring Agastya Nanda and Jaideep Ahlawat. The film is slated to release on December 25. (File Photo)