45 years of Shalimar: One of most expensive films of 70s that bombed at box office

Crossover cinema in India might be a recent phenomenon, but there have been a few instances in the past when filmmakers made an attempt to make films of this sub-genre. When Dev Anand produced Guide, in 1965, he decided to make it in two languages - Hindi and English. When Ramesh Sippy made Sholay, he made a point to hire many crew members from the west, especially for his action sequence, to lend a more suave technical element to his film. However, the 70s had another coherent attempt at crossover cinema that sadly failed at the box office. It was the 1978 film Shalimar starring Dharmendra and Zeenat Aman.

Shalimar drew inspiration from a James Hadley Chase novel

Krishna Shah’s directorial Shalimar was the first Indo-US co-production that was made on a lavish budget, and within the realms of a conventional mainstream Hindi film. Shalimar told the story of Kumar (Dharmendra), a man on the run from the police who reaches an island and is stunned to meet a group of masterminds stationed there to steal the priceless Shalimar ruby. The storyline too derived a lot of inspiration from the James Hadley Chase titled The Vulture is a Patient Bird. Later, the script was turned into a novel by Manohar Malagaonkar - again, a very rare instance for a Hindi film even by current standards.

Hollywood stars like Rex Harrison, Sylvia Miles were part of the cast

Just like Guide, Shalimar too was shot simultaneously in both Hindi and English. However, the film’s crossover ambitions were a little more expansive. The makers of Shalimar cast prominent Hollywood stars like Rex Harrison and Sylvia Miles to pay important roles in their film. The English version of the film was titled Raiders of the Sacred Stone. With such a lavish scale and Hollywood names attached, it was not a surprise to anyone when Shalimar turned to be one of the most expensive Indian films ever made. 

Unfortunately, despite its bond film-like execution and lavish production scale, Shalimar failed to attract the Indian audience. It’s only now that the fans of kitschy cinema have understood the value of this film and its ambition.