Yash Chopra’s ‘Silsila’ remains one of the most talked-about films in Hindi cinema, not just for its story about marital infidelity but also for the circumstances surrounding its casting. The 1981 film brought Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan and Rekha together at a time when speculation about Amitabh and Rekha’s alleged relationship was already making headlines. However, the cast that Chopra initially had in mind was very different.Chopra was under considerable professional pressure when he decided to make ‘Silsila’. Several of his films, including ‘Kaala Patthar’, had failed at the box office, and another setback could have proved costly. He initially signed Smita Patil and Parveen Babi alongside Amitabh Bachchan. But shortly before filming was scheduled to begin, both actresses were replaced, with Chopra eventually bringing Rekha and Jaya Bachchan on board.According to film journalist Hanif Zaveri, Parveen’s health was among the reasons for her exit from the project. Recalling the casting process, he said, “When Silsila was being discussed, its original cast was Smita Patil and Parveen Babi. But, around that time, Parveen Babi was having some severe health issues due to which Yash Chopra had to remove her from the film. They even removed Smita Patil after that.”He added, “Yash then thought of casting Rekha and Jaya Bachchan. While Rekha happily signed the film, Jaya Bachchan wasn’t okay with the offer. When Sanjeev Kumar got to know about this, he convinced Jaya Bachchan to sign the film. Finally, the film was made.”Jaya’s hesitation, according to Hanif, stemmed from the circumstances surrounding the casting. With Rekha and Amitabh already at the centre of intense media speculation, Jaya was reportedly uncomfortable with the idea of working alongside the two in a film whose subject revolved around an extramarital relationship.Hanif explained that Jaya and Sanjeev Kumar had shared a particularly close bond after working together in Gulzar’s ‘Koshish’. “Jaya Bachchan and Sanjeev Kumar had developed a very strong bond after working together on Gulzar’s film Koshish. The film was originally offered to Moushumi Chatterjee. Later, however, for reasons best known to them, she was replaced and Jaya Bachchan entered the picture. Both Jaya and Sanjeev performed extremely well, with Sanjeev Kumar even bagging a National Award for the same,” Hanif said.He added, “With that bond, Sanjeev treated Jaya Bachchan as his Rakhi sister and Jaya too tied Rakhi to him.”In an earlier conversation with Vickey Lalwani, while discussing Sanjeev Kumar’s biography, Hanif and Sanjeev’s niece Jigna Shah also recalled how the veteran actor helped Chopra persuade Jaya to accept the role.“Yash Chopra knew that Sanjeev Kumar thought of Jaya as his sister, so he asked him to put in a good word. She agreed to do the film, but put forward one condition. She said that she would always be present on set, even when she wasn’t required,” Hanif said.Asked why Jaya had proposed the condition, he replied, “Because of Rekha, obviously.” He added, “Amitabh and Rekha were already there, and Yash Chopra desperately wanted Jaya, who was reluctant. But Sanjeev convinced her.”Chopra himself later offered another account of how the final casting came together. While speaking to Shah Rukh Khan on the occasion of his 80th birthday, the filmmaker recalled that Smita and Parveen were originally set to play the roles that eventually went to Jaya and Rekha.“I had signed both Smita Patil and Parveen Babi and both of them were to start shooting. Smita was to do the role played by Jaya Bachchan and Parveen that of Rekha. I went to meet Amitji and spoke to him about the film,” Chopra said.He recalled that Amitabh questioned whether he was completely convinced about the original casting. “It was Amitji who asked me if I was happy, content with the casting—Smita Patil, Parveen Babi and Amitabh Bachchan—and if I felt it was the ideal casting. I told him I wanted to cast him, Jayaji and Rekha. He took a long pause and told me that he was fine with the decision but asked me to convince the two actresses.”Chopra also remembered trying to ensure that the potentially sensitive casting did not create problems during production. “I had told both of them that koi gadbadi na ho (hope there will be no disturbance on the sets),” Chopra recalled with a chuckle, seemingly referring to the speculation surrounding Amitabh and Rekha and the possibility of tension between the two actresses.Veteran actor Ranjeet has also recalled Parveen’s exit from the film. In an interview with ANI, he said, “Parveen Babi was my dear friend… she was all alone. She was a beautiful lady. Always smiling. Once she was very upset and she was crying. I asked her, ‘Kya hua Parveen.’ We were in Kashmir and I don’t mind quoting because it’s a fact. A film was made, Silsila, and Parveen Babi was the original heroine but she was asked to leave. And because of a gimmick controversy, they cast Rekha and Jaya Bahaduri in the film otherwise it was Parveen and Rekha.”Hanif has previously spoken about Parveen’s struggles with her mental health and the circumstances that led to her being dropped from ‘Silsila’. In an interview with Meri Saheli, he claimed that the actress had become emotionally attached to the costumes she had been given for the film and even took them with her to Kashmir, where she was shooting ‘Kaalia’ with Amitabh.According to Hanif, those around Parveen had begun noticing changes in her behaviour. He claimed that Amitabh noticed something was wrong and contacted Chopra.“Amitabh Bachchan noticed some changes in Parveen Babi and immediately called Yash Chopra. He asked him to come quickly: ‘Yahan kuch gadbad hai.’ When Yash reached, he saw Parveen had put on some weight which was not sitting well with the character of Silsila,” Hanif said.Chopra, who was already anxious about the film’s prospects, reportedly did not want to take any further risks. “He was also worried for her mental health issues. He then decided to remove her from the film,” Hanif said.Hanif has also claimed that Parveen subsequently came to believe that Amitabh had deliberately played a role in her removal from the project. These claims, however, form part of accounts shared years after the film was made.Despite the extraordinary attention surrounding its casting, ‘Silsila’ did not emerge as a major box-office success. Its subject, casting and the real-life speculation surrounding its lead actors nevertheless ensured that the film remained a talking point long after its release.A year later, Mahesh Bhatt’s ‘Arth’ arrived and went on to become a major success. The film was subsequently compared with ‘Silsila’, with speculation that Bhatt had drawn inspiration from Chopra’s film. Bhatt, however, later dismissed the comparison.
