'Mughal-E-Azam' trivia: Did you know it took 16 years to shoot the epic love story?

Mughal-E-Azam is a 1960 film directed by K. Asif. The film starring Madhubala, Dilip Kumar and Prithviraj Kapoor in leading roles is considered as one of the most influential Bollywood films of all time. One of the greatest love stories, Mughal-E-Azam has everything - from a massive budget to impressive sets and authentic costumes. The film explores the themes of love, loyalty, family and war through the tragic love story of the dancer Anarkali and Mughal prince Salim. Here are some interesting facts about the film which many might not be aware of:

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Trivia for Mughal-E-Azam

• The well-known song "Pyar Kiya To Darna Kiya" has a unique history attached to it. The song cost Rs. 10 million at a time when a movie would be made for less than a million. Reportedly, the song was written and re-written 105 times by lyricist Shakeel Badayuni. The song was shot in the renowned Sheesh Mahal (Palace of Mirrors). Also in those days, there was no way to provide the reverberation of sound, and hence playback singer Lata Mangeshkar sang the song in a studio bathroom.

• The film took 16 years to be complete.
• Mughal-E-Azam was the first full feature-length movie to be colourised for a theatrical re-release in the history of cinema.
• For the battle sequence of the film, 2,000 camels, 4,000 horses and 8,000 troops were used. Also, many of the soldiers were borrowed from the Indian Army.

• The statue of Krishna, which was used in the film, was made of pure gold.
• The movie was initially shot three times, once each for the Hindi, Tamil and English languages.

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• The famous song "Ae Mohabbat Zindabad" had legendary singer Mohammad Rafi singing with a backup chorus of more than 100 singers.
• When bookings for Mughal-E-Azam opened, there was chaos and near-riots at Mumbai's famous Maratha Mandir. 
• When the first shoot of the film began in 1946, the director had cast Chandra Mohan, D.K. Sapru, and Nargis for the roles of Akbar, Salim and Anarkali, respectively.
• The epic battle scene of the flick was used in the music video for Arling, Riley, Mondraain and The Bollywood Mystery song "The Battle".
• In the film Kala Baazar, the premiere of "Mughal-E-Azam" was shown as a live event where Dev Anand does black-marketing of the premiere show's tickets.
• Madhubala's heavy chains and ornaments were all authentic and not lightweight fake accessories.

• The film's conception began in the year 1944, but it took many years before the film was shot. 
• Music maestro Naushad Saab worked on the music of Mughal-E-Azam for 50 years.

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