The making of Bollywood’s greatest classics frequently crossed the line into pure madness, featuring stars shackled in real iron chains and live bullets fired on set.
Director K. Asif spent over a decade making Mughal-e-Azam (1960), a film so expensive that a single song sequence nearly bankrupted the production. For the legendary number "Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya," Asif built a replica of the Sheesh Mahal (Palace of Mirrors) using imported Belgian glass. The set cost 1.5 million rupees at a time when an entire feature film could be made for a million. Asif also refused to use fake props on his lead actress. For scenes where the courtesan Anarkali is imprisoned, Madhubala wore actual heavy iron chains that tore the skin on her wrists, leaving scars that lasted the rest of her life.
Kamal Amrohi’s Pakeezah (1972) required an agonizing 14 years to complete, surviving the industry's shift from black-and-white to color film, the introduction of Cinemascope, and the divorce of Amrohi and his lead actress, Meena Kumari. By the time filming resumed in 1969, Kumari was dying of liver cirrhosis. She was so physically frail that she could not complete many of the rigorous classical dance sequences. Amrohi used a body double, Padma Khanna, shooting her from behind or in extreme wide shots, while Kumari managed the facial expressions from a seated position. She died exactly one month after the film's theatrical release.
The industry-defining "curry western" Sholay (1975) nearly ended in tragedy during its climax. Frustrated by repeated retakes while firing blanks, actor Dharmendra allegedly fired a gun loaded with live ammunition. The bullet narrowly missed his co-star Amitabh Bachchan. The film's iconic villain, Gabbar Singh, also came close to a different fate. Amjad Khan was cast only after Danny Denzongpa turned down the role, and scriptwriters initially lobbied to drop Khan during filming because they felt his voice lacked the necessary menace.