This year, Netflix released its thriller Sikandar ka Muqaddar, an inversion of the 1978 Amitabh Bachchan blockbuster Muqaddar Ka Sikandar. While the streaming platform’s offering was well-received, it pales in comparison to the original. Old is gold.
Muqaddar Ka Sikandar was the highest-grossing Bollywood film of the year—a Diwali blockbuster and an overseas hit in the then Soviet Union. It gave India cinema one of its most popular tragic heroes. Bachchan fans still shudder at the scene where his Sikandar falls to the spear of the villain Dilawar (Amjad Khan).
Packed with romance, melodrama, and action, the film boasts a stellar cast featuring Vinod Khanna, Rekha, Rakhee Gulzar, and, of course, Bachchan and Khan.
It was also one of several films where Bachchan played an orphan, alongside Zanjeer (1973), Laawaris (1981), and Agneepath (1990). In many ways, the success of Muqaddar Ka Sikandar cemented the partnership between Bachchan and director Prakash Mehra, who had previously worked together on Zanjeer, Bachchan’s breakout film.
Also read: How Kader Khan’s dialogues made Devdas look cool in ‘Muqaddar Ka Sikandar’
A timeless plot
The movie follows Sikandar’s life from his employment in a wealthy man’s house to his friendship with the employer’s daughter and his ‘career’ growth as a bounty hunter of sorts. But nothing is straightforward in 1970s Bollywood.
As an illiterate adult, Sikandar enlists his friend Vishal (Vinod Khanna) to write a love letter to his former employer’s daughter, Kaamna (Rakhee Gulzar), without revealing her identity. Kaamana mistakenly believes the letter is from Vishal, reciprocates his feelings, and he, unaware of the truth, responds in kind.
Sikandar is shattered and finds solace in Zohra Bai (Rekha), who works in a brothel. Here too, a tragic case of misunderstanding leads Dilawar (Khan) to believe that Sikandar stands in the way of his love for Zohra.
Khanna and Bachchan, professional rivals, worked together to create magic in films like Hera Pheri (1976), Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), and Khoon Pasina (1977). Muqaddar Ka Sikander was their final collaboration.
Khanna excelled in the film’s comedic scenes, especially in one where he helps a client elope, disguising himself as an elderly Parsi man to crash his girlfriend’s wedding . His chemistry with Rakhee shines, especially when he flirts with her, mouthing cheesy dialogues like, “If you were in court for murder, I would fight to get you out.”
But it is Bachchan in the climactic scene—playing the dying, golden-hearted lover—who steals the show. Wounded by Dilawar, he drapes himself in a shawl, willing himself to sit through the wedding of his best friend and the woman he loves.
Everlasting songs
The film’s music remains iconic, unsurprising given the lineup of legends like Kishore Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar, and Asha Bhosle.
The title track, featuring Bachchan on a Yamaha bike, became particularly memorable. In episode 7 of Kaun Banega Crorepati season 16, Bachchan admitted he was terrified during the shoot.
“I was quite nervous while doing it. I had to sing and ride the bike and put my arms up in the air while riding the bike. They didn’t ask me to lift my hands up but I just did it for fun, and it happened,” he said.
The song also follows the advice Sikandar receives from a fakir (Kader Khan) at his mother’s funeral: “Dukh ko apna le. Taqdeer tere kadmon me hogi aur tu muqaddar ka badshah hoga (Embrace sorrow. Destiny will bow at your feet, and you will become the master of your fate).”
Other popular songs from the album include ‘O Saathi Re’, ‘Dil Toh hai Dil’, and ‘Salaam-E-Ishq’. Composed by Kalyanji-Anandji with lyrics by Anjaan, the soundtrack is timeless. Prakash Mehra himself penned the lyrics of ‘Salaam-e-Ishq’, which Rekha performs in her brothel.
Muqaddar Ka Sikandar gave the audience a glimpse into Bachchan’s skill in playing a drunkard—a performance later perfected in Sharaabi (1984). While the angry young man never played the role of Devdas, these films proved he would have been an exceptional fit for the iconic character.