Amitabh Bachchan's role in 'Bombay to Goa' was first offered to Rajiv Gandhi; read trivia

Amitabh Bachchan got his first big break in Bollywood as a lead in the film Bombay To Goa. The film also starred Aruna Irani, Shatrughan Sinha, and Mehmood in the supporting roles. Bombay To Goa was declared as a hit film and mostly became popular for its catchy tunes. As per a report from a popular news daily, director Mehmood, who also played the role of a bus conductor in the film, had initially offered the lead role to then politician Rajiv Gandhi, who turned it down. Rajiv Gandhi later served as the 6th Prime Minister of India. The offer then went to Amitabh Bachchan, read some more interesting facts about the film:

Interesting facts about the film Bombay to Goa

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• The driver and the conductor in the film Bombay to Goa were named Rajesh and Khanna respectively. This was a tribute to the superstar Rajesh Khanna who was the legend of Indian cinema when the movie released.
• Mehmood who directed the film Bombay to Goa was looking for a protagonist for the film. That is when Amitabh Bachchan walked into the room and Mehmood instantly decided to cast him.
• Aruna Irani was cast in the film because she was the only actor who agreed to work with Amitabh Bachchan because he wasn’t that popular back then.
• Bombay to Goa is an official remake of a Tamil film Madra to Pondicherry.
• Apart from Padosan, the film Bombay to Goa is termed as one of the best classic comedies in Bollywood.
• After his role in the film Bombay To Goa, Amitabh Bachchan rose to fame and was offered a role by Salim Javed in the film Zanjeer, which later made Amitabh Bachchan household name.

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• Amitabh Bachchan insisted Shatrughan Sinha to accept the role of a villain despite the fact that he wasn’t keen on doing it. He later agreed to do the role because of his close friendship with the latter.
• Bombay to Goa is the only film in which Shatrughan Sinha played the role of a villain and Amitabh Bachchan as a protagonist.
• Bombay To Goa was also Aruna Irani’s first leading role as a heroine.
• The film Bombay to Goa was remade in Marathi as Navra Mazha Navsacha starring Sachin Pilgaonkar and his wife Supriya Pilgaonkar.
• Lalita Pawar’s character as Kashibai was one of the main highlights of the film.
• The role of Amitabh Bachchan was also offered to Jeetendra but he declined it because he did not want to work opposite actor Aruna Irani.

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