Bollywood legend Dilip Kumar, who played the role of Prince Salim in K. Asif’s grand historical epic Mughal-E-Azam, did not watch the film upon its release in 1960 due to his soured relations with the director, revealed his wife Saira Banu Khan in a long post on Instagram on Wednesday.

In her note, the 79-year-old actress also described the cause of the rift between her husband and K. Asif, who were close friends. She revealed that Asif had secretly married Kumar’s younger sister Akhtar without informing him or his family, leading to a strained relationship between the two men.

“I got to know that the great camaraderie and friendship between Sahib and his very close friend K. Asif, the director of Mughal-E-Azam, had soured because Asif Sahab had sprung a surprise on Sahib and his family by secretly marrying his younger sister Akhtar without breathing a word to Dilip Sahib,” she wrote.

“The strange thing is that Sahib had never seen Mughal-E-Azam because of these adverse events, I suppose,” the Bollywood veteran added.

Saira went on to describe how Kumar, accompanied by her, had first watched the blockbuster at Pune’s Film and Television Institute just after their marriage.

“Later, after our marriage, we were invited to the Film and Television Institute of Poona. It was a charming experience wherein the students all gathered around Sahib and the Institute’s notables were honoured to receive Dilip Sahab and to keep and maintain his films, which were screened repeatedly to those studying at the Institute. I jumped with delight as soon as I got to know that they held Mughal-E-Azam as a lesson in drama. I requested them to screen Mughal-E-Azam and became instrumental in showing Mughal-E-Azam to Sahib for the very first time. What an honour,” she recalled, sharing a throwback picture and a poster of the film on Instagram.

The actress also talked about her own excitement ahead of Mughal-E-Azam's premiere at Maratha Mandir on August 5,1960. Saira, then a young admirer of Dilip Kumar, recalled how she had meticulously prepared for the premiere, hoping to catch the eyes of the actor she adored. She shared how she had persuaded her mother to help her switch from Western clothing to a traditional, heavy sari adorned with a form of Indian embroidery.

"Next I persuaded my mother to get me out of my Western blouses and skirts and hand over the heaviest gota-laden sari that she possessed. The effect of the outfit on me was a scream because I hardly weighed more than a minimal paper weight, and the sari weighed a ton. But do you think I would give up? I draped it with my mother’s help and very bravely weathered the storm of swaying when I walked side-to-side with the heavy fabric,” she reminisced.

“I had built castles in the air for years and was well aware of all the bewitchingly beautiful ladies, such as the mind-bogglingly beauteous Madhubala and many others, who were interested in Sahib. But do you think anything could deter me from my dream of becoming Mrs. Dilip Kumar?” she wrote.

But Saira’s hopes were crushed when she could get no glimpse of Kumar on the day of the premiere even as she looked around the theatre eagerly. “The moment when I would exchange a glance with him went to waste, and I felt cascaded with cold water,” she recalled.

In one of her previous posts, the veteran actress recalled how the entire film industry was bustling with excitement ahead of Mughal-E-Azam’s premiere. Tickets to the first show were in such high demand that fans camped outside the theatre to secure a spot. The film reels were ceremoniously delivered to the theatre on bejewelled elephants, adding to the splendour of the occasion.

Starring Dilip Kumar and Madhubala in lead roles, Mughal-E-Azam follows the spectacular love story of Prince Salim and the courtesan Anarkali. Their love is strongly vetoed by Emperor Akbar, leading to a tragic and gripping tale of forbidden love, loyalty and sacrifice. The period drama remained the highest-grossing Indian film for 15 straight years since its release in 1960.

Saira, who made her Bollywood debut opposite Shammi Kapoor in the 1961 film Junglee, tied the knot with Dilip on October 11, 1966, when she was only 22 years old. The actress starred alongside her husband in several films like Gopi (1970), Sagina Mahato (1971) and Jwaar Bhata (1973).

Dilip passed away on July 7, 2021, at the age of 98.