Among Hindi cinema’s cult films, Lamhe (1991) was a recipient of numerous awards — including the National Award for Best Costume Design. It starred late actor Sridevi in a double role, along with actor Anil Kapoor, and the story was deemed to be ahead of its time. Kapoor goes down memory lane as the film completes 30 years today. “When your intent is honest towards a film, it pays off. This happened to me with all the films I’ve done. I sacrificed a lot to fulfil my commitments towards the filmmaker and script,” he says.

But the film’s making wasn’t free of hurdles. Sridevi, whose performance in the film was loved by everyone, had lost her father when they were shooting in London (United Kingdom). With one of the lead actors not being present at the shoot, everything was stalled. Kapoor says that late director Yash Chopra didn’t feel okay with resuming the shoot in India, as it wouldn’t have “matched London”.

“We spent two weeks there without shooting... I had shoots of two films lined up in Mumbai, including my own production Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993). I had to postpone its shooting, and cancel all the dates. We lost a lot of money. I sacrificed that film to fulfil this commitment of mine,” says the actor, who was then expecting his son Harsh Varrdhan with wife Sunita. While he feels “fulfilled” today to be part of Lamhe, he confesses he felt “bad” then, and questioned his decisions.

He also recalls how the entire unit tried to save costs during the extended stay in the UK. “Hotels were expensive. I stayed at one of Yash ji’s friend’s house. In fact, the entire unit was staying at each other’s rishtedaar’s house. We saved money, and when Sri came back, we finished the London schedule. That’s the reason the film looks so good, and has withstood the test of time. It has aged well,” the actor concludes.