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Salaam Namaste’ at 20: Siddharth Anand Revisits His Debut With Fresh On-Record Details

Anand says Aditya Chopra’s early backing turned an executive producer into a first-time director.

Overview

  • On September 9, the Saif Ali KhanPreity Zinta romcom marked its 20th anniversary, with Anand noting the film has aged well and its dialogues and music remain popular.
  • Siddharth Anand confirms the script was written for San Francisco but the shoot shifted to Melbourne for budget reasons after Yash Raj Films let him explore Australia.
  • He recalls that the CBFC approved the film without any cuts and that board members responded positively after the screening.
  • Anand credits Jaaved Jaaferi with helping co-create the character Dundee and shaping memorable touches like the “Eggjactly” catchphrase.
  • The retrospectives place the debut within Anand’s pivot to large-scale action hits such as Bang Bang, War, Pathaan and Fighter, as he now directs King starring Shah Rukh Khan.