When Amjad Khan accused Amitabh Bachchan of replacing him with ‘Ajoba’ and Amrish Puri in other films. Hindi film news

Amitabh Bachchan and Amjad Khan were more than co-stars-they were great friends. His bonds were made in the years of working together in hit films like ‘Sholay’, ‘Parvarish’, ‘The Great Juari’, and ‘Yarana’. While his on-screen chemistry was loved by fans, his off-screen friendship was equally strong. But like many relationships, a thick patch was also faced during the production of their 1990 superhero film ‘Azoba’.
Friendship
Bachchan and Khan first worked together in ‘Sholay’ (1975), where Amitabh played the role of intensive Jai, and Amjad became a legend with his role as scary Gabbar Singh. His bond strengthened only in years. One of the biggest signs of their deep friendship came in 1979, when Amjad faced a terrible road accident during his visit to Goa. The accident seriously injured him, requiring immediate medical help. Amitabh stepped up and signed hospital papers for Amjad’s emergency tracheostomy surgery, saving his life. Their friendship saw many heights and climbing, but it remained strong – until ‘Ajoba’ happened.‘Azoba’ controversy- what went wrong?
The 1990 film ‘Azoba’, directed by Shashi Kapoor and Ganadi Vasiliv, was a grand project mainly with Bachchan. According to Masala.com, Amjad was initially in an important role and was excited to be a part of the film. He even participated in the Mahurat (launch) event. But only one month in production, things took a shocking turn, they were suddenly removed from the film and replaced by Amrish Puri.
Amjad was destroyed. He suspected that his expulsion was not an accident and believed that there was a conspiracy behind it. He was the most hurt that he believed that Amitabh had played a role in taking himself out of the film. He believed that Amitabh had influenced the decision of director Shashi Kapoor due to personal differences between him.

A collision that caused more questions
Amjad did not remain silent about his feelings. He faced Shashi about the situation, while he was working on another film ‘Meri Zaban’. But instead of getting a direct answer, he was ignored when the director refused to explain why he was removed from ‘Ajoba’. This lack of clarity made him even more disappointed and deepened his crack with Amitabh.
Despite the fall, Amitabh and Amjad’s friendship is one of the most memorable bonds of Bollywood. He shared the moments of real warmth, loyalty and support over the years, but ‘Ajoba’ marked a significant turn, so that he could never really recover. Amitabh himself reflected his relationship, “We spent some curious time in various stages of our friendship … His accident, my accident and then his sudden was passing, but there was a bond that was unlike and still does it …” He wrote on his blog.