Veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha has opened up about his memories working with the late Shashi Kapoor on the 1973 romantic drama ‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’. Sinha recalled Shashi Kapoor as the most cheerful person on set during the making of the film.
‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’, which translates to “Come, embrace me,” is a 1973 Hindi romantic film directed by Manmohan Desai. The film stars Shashi Kapoor, Sharmila Tagore, and Shatrughan Sinha. The film was produced by A.K. Nadiadwala, with Om Prakash rounding out the principal cast.
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The film became a box office hit and ranked as the 10th highest-grossing Hindi film of 1973. For Shatrughan Sinha, ‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’ was part of an early phase in his career when he was building his reputation through supporting roles in successful films.
What Sinha said about Shashi Kapoor
Shatrughan Sinha described Shashi Kapoor as the most cheerful actor on the sets of the film. Over the years, Sinha has spoken warmly about Kapoor’s personality and the energy he brought to every shoot.
Shashi and Shatrughan worked together in films like Kala Patthar, Aa Gale Lag Ja, Shaan, Ilzaam, and Gautam Govinda, among many others. The two actors were known for cracking jokes and banter on set, all in good spirit.
Shashi Kapoor’s nature on set
Those who worked with Shashi Kapoor consistently noted his warmth and ease around his co-stars and crew. On the sets of ‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’, the child actor Master Titto Khatri, who played Shashi Kapoor’s son, was scared of Shatrughan Sinha because his character had to scold and slap the boy in certain scenes. Shashi Kapoor would give Titto ice cream and chocolates to comfort him when the child felt frightened on set.
Shashi Kapoor’s legacy in Hindi cinema is associated with good looks, commercial success, critical acclaim, and a temperament described as temperate and wholesome, one that took everything in its stride.
The story behind the film
‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’ tells the story of Prem, a skating trainer played by Shashi Kapoor. Sharmila Tagore plays Preeti, the daughter of a wealthy man named Heera Chand, played by Om Prakash. The two fall in love. Preeti becomes pregnant but her father creates a misunderstanding between them and they go their separate ways. Years later, they meet again, and Shatrughan Sinha plays Dr. Amar, a foreign-returned doctor who is set to marry Preeti. The story moves through emotional tensions involving the three characters and a handicapped child before reaching its resolution.
Director Manmohan Desai himself stated in 1984 that despite the box office success of his films, he considered ‘Aa Gale Lag Jaa’ to be his best film up until that point. However, it was not particularly successful with wider audiences at the time.