Satish Kaushik death: Why the late actor said no to sequels or remakes of iconic movie 'Mr. India'

Renowned actor-director Satish Kaushik, who died in Delhi on Thursday due to a severe heart attack, had once said that iconic movies such as Mr. India should not be remade or given a sequel in today's world.  

Mr. India, which was released in cinema halls on May 25, 1987, is one of the critically acclaimed Hindi movies of all time. Mr. India was the story of violinist Arun Verma, played by Anil Kapoor, who comes across a watch made by his scientist father, which can make the user invisible. The story revolves around how Verma with the help of the device, takes on Mogambo, played by actor Amrish Puri, who wanted to conquer India with his devilish intentions. 

The movie catapulted to stardom all its key players — director Shekhar Kapur, main actor Anil Kapoor, main actress Sridevi, villain Amrish Puri, and Kaushik, who became famous for his role of Calendar in the film. 

"In my personal opinion, there are a few films which shouldn't be touched, whether it's for a remake or sequel. Mr. India is one such film, which I feel shouldn't be remade as it will not have the same feel. Mr. India was an amalgamation of fine artists collaborating to create a good entertaining film," the late actor had said during an interview after the movie completed 35 years in 2022.  

The movie was the last written script by the celebrated duo Saleem-Javed. It was produced by Anil Kapoor's brother Boney Kapoor. Kaushik said it was not easy to work on the science fiction film at that time as there was not enough technology available. 

“Right from Shekhar Kapur to Boney Kapoor, Javed Akhtar to special effects, action directors and the cast and crew, including cinematographer Baba Azmi, action director Veeru Devgan, Peter Periera (special effects camera), Art Director Bijon Das Gupta, choreographer Saroj Khan and music composers Laxmikant Pyarelal, everybody believed in the project and put in a lot of effort and there was good teamwork,” Kaushik said.  

Sharing a post on Instagram on the day the movie was released, Kaushik said May 25 was his lucky date as two of his movies, Mr. India and Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai, were released.  

 

 

The late actor said: “We miss Sridevi and Amrish Puri so much. Not many people would know but Sridevi had a high temperature when she was shooting for the iconic song “Kaate Nahi Kat Te” in the rain. She was a dedicated actor. There are a few films in your career that you can write books on.”  

In 2020, Bollywood director Ali Abbas Zafar said he wants to do a movie with the same name but clarified that the movie would be different from the 1987 cult movie. 

Zafar said: "It’s a completely new film, we are just calling it Mr. India. My film is essentially about the common man fighting a mighty villain, but done in a cool, hip way, using science and technology and being relevant to today’s social scenario.” 

The cult favorite was remade in Tamil and Kannada.