Lyricist-writer Javed Akhtar stirred up a hornet’s nest when, in a recent interview to mark actor Amitabh Bachchan’s 80th birthday, he said that instead of Big B, actor Dharmendra was the first choice for the film, Zanjeer (1973).

Akhtar claimed that the Apne (2007) actor turned down the role, among other actors. “Amitabh Bachchan was actually the last choice for Zanjeer. The script was written for Dharmendra ji, but for some reason, he refused to work on it. Prakash Mehra (the film’s director) had a script, but no leading man. He went from actor to actor to offer the role. Everybody refused to do the film,” Akhtar, 77, told India Today.

He added that many actors turned down the film as it had “no romance angle or comedy” and the lead character “was supposed to be a very grim, serious, bitter person”.

When HT City tweeted about the lyricist’s comments, the 86-year-old replied, “Javed, kaise ho... dikhave ki iss duniya mein haqeeqaten dabi rah jaati hain. jeetey raho... Dilon ko gudgudana khoob aata hai….. kaash sar chad ke bolne ka jaadu bhi sekh liya hota….. (sic).”

Soon after social media users started deciphering the tweet, Dharmendra clarified that his post wasn’t meant to signal any jibe: He wrote, “Refusing Zanjeer, was an emotional hurdle which i have mentioned in aap ki Adaalat. So please don’t misunderstand me. i always love Javed and Amit (sic).”