Anupam Kher & David Dhawan Movies Together List — 8 Films

The shape of the work

The 1990s belonged to Haseena Maan Jaayegi; the 2010s to Main Tera Hero. Anupam Kher acted in every film; David Dhawan directed all of them. Strictly Hindi cinema — they never crossed industries together.

Partnership facts

• David Dhawan cast Anupam Kher in Shola Aur Shabnam (1992) after seeing him play a hilarious villain in a small-budget film. Kher was hesitant to do comedy again, but Dhawan convinced him by saying, 'Trust me, you'll steal the show.' He did.
• On the set of Deewana Mastana (1997), Anupam Kher would deliberately flub his lines to make David Dhawan laugh. Dhawan would then rewrite the scene on the spot, turning Kher's goofs into the final script. That's why Kher's character feels so loose and unpredictable.
• Anupam Kher and David Dhawan have a standing bet: every time they finish a film together, Kher has to cook Dhawan a meal at home. For Yeh Hai Jalwa (2002), Kher made his famous dal makhani. Dhawan still says it's the best he's ever had.
• The success of Shola Aur Shabnam (1992) directly led David Dhawan to cast Anupam Kher in his next three films. That chain of four movies made Kher the go-to comic villain for an entire decade of Bollywood comedies.
• Anupam Kher once said about David Dhawan: 'He is the only director who lets me be completely mad. I don't have to act — I just have to react to his madness.'
• In Main Tera Hero (2014), David Dhawan gave Anupam Kher zero rehearsals. He told Kher, 'Just walk in and do whatever comes to your mind.' Kher improvised the entire 'I am your father' scene in one take. Dhawan kept it in the final cut.