Subhash Ghai’s surprise winner Kalicharan was released on February 7, 1976. Kalicharan was produced by N.N.Sippy, directed by Subhash Ghai, and starred Shatrughan Sinha, Reena Roy, and Premnath. The music by Kalyanji-Anandji was a hit, especially Lataji’s ‘Ja re ja oh harjayee’.
When Subhash Ghai gave up his dreams of becoming a successful actor, he did what all failed actors do: He became a film director. And what better actor to play the lead than close friend and FTII colleague Shatrughan Sinha?
With Kalicharan, Sinha temporarily discarded the mantle of villainy to plunge into what came to be known as glorified goondaism. The toughie’s part seemed to be written for Shatrughan. Ghai and Sinha came together once again for another tough-guys-don’t-dance frolic in Vishwanath two years later. But this cricketer-titled actioner failed to impress audiences. Looking back at Kalicharan, the leading man’s bombastic dialogues, matched by Premnath’s phlegmatic counterpoints, seem completely overdone.
Two of the songs, the kiddies’ crooner ‘Ek Bataa Do’ and Lata Mangeshkar’s ‘Jaa Re Jaa O Harjayee’ were hit-parade favourites. Incidentally, Shatrughan Sinha and Reena Roy became great friends during the making of Kalicharan. They went on to do several films together. Most of them, including Ghai’s Vishwanath, were bombs.
Speaking on 49 years of Kalicharan, Shatrughan Sinha says, “Has it really been that many years since Kalicharan released? It is a special film as it was my first big solo-hero hit. I played a double role. Also, it was directed by my dear friend Shri Subhash Ghai. I think he was under pressure from the producers to sign a big star, Rajesh Khanna. But to this man’s credit, he stood by me. When Kalicharan became the surprise success of 1976, my career took off in a big way.”
