Did you know Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat Aman starrer 'Don' was rejected by these actors?

Several Bollywood actors have, in the past, rejected a movie which later turned out to be a blockbuster. There have been various instances when actors had to turn them down because of numerous issues including dates, storyline to name a few. One of the biggest examples for the same is Amitabh Bachchan’s Don, which was released in 1978.

Don features Zeenat Aman, Helen, Pran, Mac Mohan, Om Shivpuri, Iftekhar, and Yusuf Khan, Pinchoo Kapoor in pivotal roles. According to reports, this action crime thriller flick was directed by Chandra Barot to assist his close friend in paying off his debts. Moreover, the film was rejected by three actors. Read on to know more:

Actors who turned down Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat Aman starrer Don 

Reportedly, filmmaker Chandra Barot revealed that Don was initially offered to ace actors Dev Anand, Jeetendra, and Dharmendra. But all of them turned down the movie. The director also admitted that it did not bother them that much and that they just wanted to see Salim-Javed’s name mentioned on the movie’s poster. Chandra Barot also added that the script was already prepared and they took it immediately.

According to reports, the filmmaker recalled that the film did not have a title back then. The action crime thriller movie was called the ''Don Wali Script'' in the film industry. Later on, Amitabh Bachchan got the lead role and the film rocked at the box office.

To date, numerous remakes of Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat Aman’s Don have been created. It inspired several south Indian flicks including Rajinikanth’s Billa. Moreover, Farhan Akhtar helmed Don: The Chase Begins Again in 2006 and its sequel Don 2 in 2011 featuring Shah Rukh Khan in the titular role. Both the action-thriller films were successful at the box office.

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Plot: Don

Zeenat Aman’s Don stars Amitabh Bachchan in a dual role. The actor portrays a crime lord and his lookalike Vijay, who is a down and out slum-dweller. However, the gangster flees the cops and gets killed during a showdown with law enforcement officer DSP D’Silva. Planning to get more information about Don’s gang, officer D’Silva convinces Vijay to masquerade as Don and act as an informant for the police for tracking down the root of the criminal organization. Vijay goes undercover for busting the gang and everyone starts considering him as the Don. But Vijay has to prove himself innocent in front of the cops, which can lead to fatalities.

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