40 years of Saaransh: Anupam Kher reveals his DRAMATIC experience on the day of his debut film’s release: “There were riots in Bombay; when the film got over, kisi ne mujhe pehchana hi nahin. I could hear them saying, ‘Woh buddha toh kamaal ka tha’”

The heartwarming trailer of Vijay 69 was released today by Netflix and it features Anupam Kher in a never-before-seen avatar. A day before the trailer launch, Anupam Kher spoke to a select group of journalists about his experience of doing the film and a lot more. He also opened up on completing 40 years as an actor this year.Anupam Kher’s debut film, Saaransh (1984) featured him as a 65-year-old man though he was in his late 20s at the time. This writer asked him about the film and what he did on the day of release. The actor answered, “The marketing strategy of Saaransh was superb. The whole industry was shown the film over a period of one month.He also added, “Sanjeev Kumar was going to do the film. I was thrown out 10 days before the shoot.” Anupam Kher then somehow managed to bag the lead role in the film, directed by Mahesh Bhatt.He continued, “Sanjeev Kumar was also shown the film. I remember I was watching his reaction from the projection room and he was crying like a baby. He hugged me and told Bhatt saab, ‘I could not have done this as well as this man because I am not as hungry as he is’. This is when the Rajshri team thought of an interesting idea. They got Sanjeev Kumar to present the trailer of Saaransh.”Anupam Kher then spoke about the day Saaransh released in cinemas. He said, “It was the day riots had started in Bombay, on June 25, 1984. Bhatt saab and I were going to the Metro cinema to check the audience reaction. We saw things set on fire while we were on our way. However, when we reached Metro, there were many people who had turned up to watch Saaransh”He then revealed that the audience couldn’t recognize him as he had a very different look and nobody could imagine that a young chap could play such a difficult role of an old man so well. He said, “When the film got over and people came out. Kisi ne mujhe pehchana hi nahin! Koi dekh hi nahin raha the mujhe. I could hear them saying, ‘Woh buddha toh kamaal ka tha’! If someone stared at me, I would tell them, ‘Haan main hi hoon (film ka actor)’! “Anupam Kher continued to raise laughs as he said, “I then visited many other theatres in Mumbai and it was the same experience. Then I thought of wearing a wig. But then the whole purpose will be defeated.”Saaransh is one of the rare films to be shot in Mumbai’s Shivaji Park. On this, he stated, “(During the shoot of the film), old people used to come sit next to me and share about their life.”He then noted, “When I was doing Saaransh, I was a nobody. And when I did Vijay 69, I was an actor with 542 films in my filmography and with 40 years of experience. If I am still able to evoke the same kind of emotion and make people forget Anupam Kher for some time, I think it’s the best tribute to the director and producer of this film.”Produced by YRF Entertainment, Vijay 69 drops on Netflix on November 8.Also Read: “I’m NOT A QUITTER”: Anupam Kher marks 40 years ahead of directorial debut Vijay 69’s release; calls it “reflection of his belief in human spirit”