Main Hoon Na is Shah Rukh Khan’s one of the biggest hits. Incidentally, it is the first movie produced under the banner of Red Chillies Entertainment and also the directorial debut of Farah Khan . There are many interesting stories related to this super hit which has some unforgettable lyrics by Javed Akhtar and music by Anu Malik. As Main Hoon Na completes 20 years today, know such interesting stories in detail!
Sholay’s Dhanno was part of Main Hoon Na
Both Farah Khan and her brother Sajid Khan are crazy Bollywood fans who grew up on nothing but Hindi movies. So when the famous choreographer decided to make a thriller with Shah Rukh Khan it was natural for her to include some hints of the movies that she loved. The carriage in which SRK chased the shooter was named Dhanno which is a reference to the movie Sholay in which Hema Malini’s horse was called Dhanno.
Ramayan and Mahabharata
The movie has also taken inspiration from Ramayan as Shah Rukh Khan who portrays the righteous, father-loving, obedient, and patriotic Ram Prasad Sharma is named after Lord Ram whereas his younger brother Zayed Khan is named Lakshman Prasad Sharma aka Lucky after Lakshman.
Even the few dialogues have references to Ramayan and Mahabharat for example there is one moment when Zayed Khan says that he would feel like Mahabharat if he continues with the name Lakshman whereupon his elder brother corrects him saying not Mahabharat but Ramayan.
SRK-Ash Tiff helped Sush get the role
Sushmita Sen played the role of Chandni in Main Hoon Na. Incidentally, it was the first time that she wore a saree in a movie and also it was her first film with King Khan. However, SRK and Farah Khan always wanted Aishwarya Rai Bachchan to do the lead role. However, since his tiff with Ash after Chalte Chalte, Shah Rukh and his Devdas co-star were not on talking terms which is why the role eventually went to Sushmita Sen.
So many misses
Most of the actors in the second lead were not the first choices. For example, Farah always wanted Naeeruddin Shah to play Raghavan later played by Suniel Shetty. Since Naseerji was busy with another project he opted out of this movie. However, he did oblige the team by doing a cameo as SRK’s father and Kirron Kher’s husband in the movie that had the special Masoom-story touch.
Similarly, Ayesha Takia opted out of Main Hoon at the last minute and Amrita Rao was roped in to play Sanjana aka Sanju Bakshi.
Even Zayed Khan was not the first choice as Lucky. Farah and SRK wanted Farhan Akhtar to play this second lead. After he opted out of it, the director approached many other actors like Hrithik Roshan and Sohail Khan but since no one gave the nod, Zayed Khan was given the role.
Things that worked for Main Hoon Na
Farah Khan wanted R.D. Burman-style music for her directorial debut and had asked Anu Malik with whom she was co-judging Indian Idol at that time to compose songs similar to the R.D. style. The famous music composer delivered some biggest hits with Main Hoon Na. Be it Tumse Milke Dil Ka Hai Jo Haal, Gori Gori Gori Gori, or the title song of the film, each of them were big hits.
The characters of Bindu and Boman Irani were done fabulously and Rakhi Sawant even in that minuscule role did make her presence felt. And who can forget the spitting act of Satish Shah in Main Hoon Na?