‘He was worried about a drunk scene’
4 min readKochiApr 27, 2026 06:37 PM IST In an illustrious career spanning five decades, Dilip Kumar delivered scores of noteworthy performances, positioning himself as one of the greatest actors in the history of Indian cinema and serving as an inspiration to both his peers and successors. Recently, veteran screenwriter Kamlesh Pandey recalled an incident during the production of Saudagar (1991), further underscoring Dilip’s in-depth understanding of screen acting. While Saudagar was being filmed in Manali, Himachal Pradesh, the actor suddenly stopped showing up on set. This happened for three consecutive days, and on each day, Dilip made one excuse or another for not coming to work. On the third day, however, director Subhash Ghai lost his temper and demanded that the entire production be wrapped up immediately. This prompted Kamlesh to enter the scene and speak with Dilip to understand what was wrong, which turned out to be one of the most memorable experiences of his lifetime. Only in Screen | I watched Grey’s Anatomy for 16 years; The Pitt made me realise we …
