“Come and See What This Girl Has Done”
To Zeenat Aman, Satyam Shivam Sundaram( sss) represented an opportunity of a lifetime. While producers continued to line up outside her door, she was tired of playing the glamour girl. Anew trend for action films had begun, but in them, heroines ended up getting the short shrift. Al ove scene or two was the most they could hope for. Additionally, even her most ardent fans did not dare claim that she was a good actress, and her critics were convinced she was no more than a pretty face, useful for filling the background but hardly enough to hang an entire film on.
Aman decided to win the sss role for herself. She saw
Barsaat, Awara and other Raj Kapoor films and arrived at his doorstep to claim the part. By this time, Raj had decided to launch a search for an actress, as he felt none of the current crop could do justice to the role. Aman was probably the last person he would have thought suitable. The girl he had in mind had to be plain looking and willing to be made up to look scarred in the film. Aman was attractive, not a good actress and spoke Hindi with an accent. But she refused to give up. She made up for the role and burst into his cottage. Flabbergasted, Raj rang up his wife and said, “Come and see what this girl has done.” She arrived with a gold coin to bless Aman, and Raj knew he had found his heroine.
For the male lead, he signed his brother Shashi, whom he had last directed when he played the young Raj in Awara and Shree420. Character artistes such as Leela Chitnis, David and A. K. Hangal were added to the cast, and he was ready to shoot.