Sooraj Barjatya spent an entire day to keep a cup on Madhuri Dixit’s stomach for Didi Tera Devar Deewana | Sit With Hitlist

Sooraj Barjatya, A still from Didi Tera Devar Deewana

Sooraj Barjatya's Hum Aapke Hain Koun featuring Salman Khan and Madhuri Dixit is a film that celebrates Indian wedding traditions by weaving in the story of a married couple and the relationship between their families. It is a story about sacrificing one's love for one's family. Madhuri, who played the role of Nisha, was romantically paired opposite Salman's character Prem in the film. On the latest episode of Mid-day's Sit With Hitlist series, Sooraj gets candid about working on the family entertainer that won the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment.

19 days of rehearsal for Didi Tera Devar Deewana

Sooraj recalled, "We did 19 days of rehearsals for Didi Tera Devar Deewana. We spent an entire day to keep a cup on Madhuri Dixit's stomach (who was pretending to be pregnant)."

The filmmaker also shared that in the Samdhi Samdhan song, Alok Nath and Reema Lagoo were the main characters while Salman and Madhuri stayed in the background. He asserted, "Can you imagine? 5 days on a set and Madhuri is only clapping behind like qawwali."

He added, "They believed in it. Not once Madhuri asked me. Because she used to say, ‘Sooraj ji I am loving this world of Chachi, Mami, I don't get to speak it'. I narrated to Salman Bhai the subject and he was so happy he started laughing. He said, ‘There isn't much for me to do, I am going to enjoy'."

The success of Hum Aapke Hain Koun

When asked what he did to get it right, Sooraj explained, "Originally this belongs to Nadiya Ke Paar structure (1982 film starring Sachin Pilgaonkar and Sadhna Singh). We owe it to a book called Kohbar Ki Shart which is a textbook at Agra University by KP Mishra. "My father read it in 1968. I am just relating it to Hum Aapke Hain Koun, Salman-Madhuri do not get married and in fact, the marriage happens the opposite, Madhuri gets married to Mohnish (Bahl), and everyone dies. It is a sad ending. But we made it differently with a small budget."

Hum Aapke Hain Koun also stars Anupam Kher, the late Reema Lagoo, Mohnish Bahl, Alok Nath, and Renuka Shahane among many others. With a length of almost three and a half hours, the film had a whopping 14 songs, all of which went on to become evergreen classics.