In the 1960s, the makers of ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ spent 15 lakh rupees to make the set of a song in this film in that era.
The sets of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s films are always in the news due to their grandeur and cost. The sets of many big South films are also being prepared at the cost of crores. The set of SS Rajamouli’s ‘Bahubali’ was also very grand and expensive, but the construction of expensive and grand sets has been going on since the rise of Indian cinema. About 65 years ago, when ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ was being made, a Sheesh Mahal was built at a cost of lakhs of rupees to shoot just a song. Let us know about the story of the construction of this palace and the wave of it in that era.
Sheesh Mahal construction and the shooting of the song
‘Mughal-e-Azam’, which was released in 1960 took 14 years to be made. The set of one song in the film took two years to be built. The song was ‘Jab Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya’. When actress Madhubala dances in the song, she is seen in all the mirrors installed in the palace, but filming it was not easy. At one point, it had become almost impossible to create this scene. Experts were called from Hollywood as well, but they also refused. The matter reached the point of demolishing the Sheesh Mahal, which was built for Rs 15 lakh, but then cinematographer RD Mathur found a solution. As soon as the camera was installed, its light would hit the mirrors. Reflectors were installed to stop this, but when the light fell on them, the eyes would get dazzled and shooting would become difficult. Mathur found a corner on the set with his camera where the light was bouncing. There was no reflection from there. Then Madhubala was seen twirling in the colourful mirrors dressed as Anarkali and this became an iconic scene in Hindi cinema.
The film was made for Rs 1.5 crores
When R. 15 lakhs were spent to prepare the set of a song, then it is only natural that the budget of the film must have been in crores. This film was one of the most expensive films of Bollywood. All the clothes worn by the actors in the film were stitched in Delhi and were engraved in Surat. Jewellery was made in Hyderabad, weapons in Rajasthan and shoes in Agra. 2000 camels and 4000 horses were used in the film. Due to all this, the budget of the film reached Rs 1.5 crores.
The most expensive song of the film
The most expensive song of the film ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ is ‘Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya’. This song was written 105 times before it got approval. At that time, since there were no mixing facilities, Naushad recorded it with Lata Mangeshkar in the washroom of the studio to bring resonance in the song.
