The film Dushman, starring Rajesh Khanna, Mumtaz and Meena Kumari, was released on January 7, 1972. Superstar Rajesh Khanna received the Filmfare Best Actor Award for his brilliant performance in this film directed by Dulal Guha. Although the film has given us many iconic songs to jam on, the famous song “Vada Tera Vaada”, even after 50 years of its composition, rejuvenates the mood. Legendary singer Lata Mangeshkar teamed up with Kishore Kumar for many memorable tracks in this film.
Dushman was the year’s highest-grossing film. When the film was released, Kishore Kumar denied singing the song that gained popularity within a few days. Chaitanya Padukone, a film journalist and writer, revealed an intriguing fact about this film. In an interview with the Times, he stated, “At first, the singer refused to sing ‘Vada Tera Vaada.’ The music was composed by the Laxmikant-Pyarelal duet. According to Pyarelal, Kishore Kumar refused to record this song as he believed it suited Mohammed Rafi Sahab’s voice better.
Kishore Kumar was so adamant that even after Rajesh Khanna tried convincing him, he still didn’t agree. Finally, Laxmikant had an idea, and he respectfully told Kishore Kumar that if he would not sing this song, they would discontinue it. Kishore Da agreed to try, and when the film was released, this song, written by Anand Bakshi Saab, was the biggest success.
Rajesh Khanna took a major risk with his film “Dushman,” which is based on Virendra Sinha’s story. Rajesh had the image of a romantic hero, but when Dulal Guha approached him, he consented to play a truck driver convicted of drunken driving and murder. Although Kaka’s image may have been harmed, this did not happen, and the audience applauded him for his outstanding performance in the movie.
