Zeenat Aman opens up about Don’s wheelchair scene with Amitabh Bachchan

New Delhi: Zeenat Aman went down memory lane and recalled shooting a wheelchair scene alongside Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan from the cult film ‘Don’ and called it an ‘awfully difficult’ experience. The film was released in 1978 and featured Aman in the role of Roma and Bachchan as the ruthless underworld boss Don and his innocent lookalike, Vijay.

Aman shared a video scene of the film on her ‘Instagram’ handle on Thursday, in which she pretended to be a nurse and had to take Bachchan out in a wheelchair. The actress said she had to keep the expressions, but it was a struggle for her.

“I presume there’s such a thing as vintage video Wednesday. Yes, this is THAT scene from (the original 1978) ‘Don’ - Roma, ever enterprising and daring, dupes the police and escapes with an unconscious Don from a hospital room,” she wrote.

She added, “Now I had already worked with many of the cast and crew in previous productions, so I was at complete ease throughout the making of the film. I also relished Roma’s character. She was smart, daring and smooth. Who wouldn’t want to embody such a woman! Unfortunately, being smooth on set that day wasn’t easy! Why, you ask. Because that relic of a wheelchair, with Mr Bachchan’s dead weight to boot, was awfully difficult to manoeuvre. I had to keep my poker face for the part, while actually pushing with all my might.”

The film was directed by Chandra Barot and turned out to be the third highest-grossing Indian film during its release. It also inspired actor and filmmaker Farhan Akhtar to make the ‘Don’ films, which were released in 2006 and 2011, respectively. The starred Shah Rukh Khan in the role of Don with Priyanka Chopra Jonas essaying Aman's character, Roma.

Akhtar is also working on another ‘Don’ film. Ranveer Singh was initially attached to the film to take on the role previously essayed by Bachchan and Khan. However, reports surfaced earlier this year, stating that the actor had walked out of the film due to creative differences over the script and delays.

Besides ‘Don’, Aman and Bachchan have worked on films such as ‘The Great Gambler’, ‘Dostana’ and ‘Laawaris’, among others.