Why we loved watching Hum

A year before, Anand must have been disappointed with the lukewarm response to his now cult classic, Agneepath. He must have pinned his hopes on Hum, an action-cum-family drama which, fortunately for him, turned out to be the second biggest blockbuster of 1991.

Soon after the film’s release, Amitabh Bachchan shocked his fans by announcing a five-year hiatus from acting. Naturally, they thronged to theatres to catch Hum. Bachchan’s portrayal of Tiger won over critics and fans alike, and he won an award for Best Actor.

The southern superstar and Bollywood baadshah came together on screen after a gap of five years. With Govinda, Mukul Anand pulled off a coup of sorts by bringing three of the biggest stars of the industry together.
 

In Agneepath, Danny Denzogpa proved to be a fitting villain opposite Amitabh Bachchan. Ironically, in Agneepath, Denzogpa’s character turns from a small-time goon to a powerful don, while it was exactly the opposite in Hum, where Bakhtawar (Denzogpa) loses both his wealth and family. The actor oozed confidence, charisma and panache as the conniving uber cool businessman. His performance earned him a nomination, but he sadly missed out to Sadashiv Amrapurkar, who bagged it for Sadak. This remains one of Danzogpa’s finest performances ever though.

She was 26; he, 49. Before the release, many wondered if the age gap between sexy Kimi Katkar and Amitabh Bachchan would prove to be a hindrance. However, they excelled as a pair. The former didn’t really have much of a role, but the duo set the stage on fire with ‘Jumma Chumma De De’. Interestingly, it was originally recorded for Ramesh Sippy's shelved film Ram Ki Sita Shyam Ki Gita, which was to star Amitabh Bachchan and Sridevi in double roles. Mukul Anand made a personal request to use the song in Hum. A few months before its release, Bappi Lahiri crooned a similar track called Tamma Tamma Loge for the film Thanedaar. Both tracks were inspired by Mory Kante’s ‘Tama tama gnogonte’.

Anupam Kher and Annu Kapoor formed a great union having produced some negative yet funny roles together in films like Ram Lakhan and Jamai Raja. Hum was their best performance ever though, until 'The Shaukeens' in 2014. Both actors wore the same clothes for the entire film, with Kapoor even shaving his head to match his naturally bald partner.

Unheralded actor Shiva Rindan  played Captain Zattack, a former army man who turns rogue after being expelled from the army. He joins forces with Giridhar to avenge his humiliation at the hands of General Rana Pratapsingh (Kader Khan). He isn't loaded with too many guns, but watch out for Captain's repetitive verbal ‘attack’.