Initially there was no female lead opposite Vinod Khanna in Amar Akbar Anthony.
Vinod Khanna felt that it was unfair as Amitabh and Rishi Kapoor had heroines and insisted Manmohan Desai for the same.
Desai was simultaneously shooting for his film Parvarish with the same starcast (Amitabh, Vinod Khanna, Neetu Singh, Shabana Azmi).
He went to Shabana and offered her Amar Akbar Anthony. He also said that he had no role for her but if she will not do the film he would be pestered by Vinod Khanna. It was so typical of Desai that he spoke just as it was and that's what endeared Shabana to do the film.
Further, Desai quickly created a small role for Shabana Azmi. The unit shot both the films concurrently moving between sets. At times the actors used to just change clothes and keep going from one set to another.
Desai utilised different floors of the same studio managing complex shoots for both the films at the same time. This showcases his legandary ability to manage multiple blockbusters at one time.
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