22 Years of Tum Bin EXCLUSIVE: “We STRUGGLED to get theatres because of Lagaan, Gadar. 2 weeks after my film came Yaadein. Dil Chahta Hai was to release a month later. Amid so many big films, a small film like ours made its way to the cinemas” – Anubhav Sinha

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By Fenil Seta -

July 14, 2023 - 1:00 PM IST

22 years ago, on July 13, Tum Bin (2001) was released in cinemas without expectations. And it turned out to be a surprise hit. It marked the debut of producer Bhushan Kumar, director Anubhav Sinha and 3 of its 4 lead actors - Priyanshu Chatterjee, Sandali Sinha and Raqesh Bapat. The fourth actor, Himanshu Malik, benefited hugely due to the popularity of the film and its songs.

22 Years of Tum Bin EXCLUSIVE: “We STRUGGLED to get theatres because of Lagaan, Gadar. 2 weeks after my film came Yaadein. Dil Chahta Hai was to release a month later. Amid so many big films, a small film like ours made its way to the cinemas” – Anubhav Sinha

Bollywood Hungama exclusively spoke to Anubhav Sinha about Tum Bin and a lot more, on its 22nd anniversary.

How do you look back at Tum Bin? It was very different compared to the films you make nowadays. Also, those were the days when people would copy stories from Hollywood films. You, meanwhile, came up with an original plot!
(Smiles) I loved the experience. I was a brave boy then I guess. It was Bhushan’s first film. We could have gone to the stars. I, however, said, ‘Naye logon ke saath banayenge’. Bhushan agreed. It was a nice, glossy film with a good story and songs. The performances were also quite nice. While making Tum Bin, we didn’t know that it would have such a long shelf life

Why didn’t you cast stars?
I don’t think it was arrogance. And I don’t remember exactly what was going on in my mind. But I think it was impossible to find three established actors. So if you cast one star, the other two had to be stars as well. I think that must have been one of the reasons. Because I am not anti-stars. I have worked with the whole gamut of stars. There was also confidence in the story. I think the story needed newcomers.

The music was a big hit and succeeded in generating hype…
Oh yes. The credit goes to Nikhil-Vinay and Faaiz Anwar. ‘Choti Choti Raatein’ was the first song to come on air. It went through the roofs in hours. The other two songs from my films that became popular in no time were ‘Dus Bahane’ and ‘Chammak Challo’. ‘Chammak Challo’ got leaked from somewhere. I remember Shah Rukh Khan called me at night and said, ‘Yaar, woh gaana leak ho gaya’. Aur raat ko hi Twitter pagal ho gaya over the song. It was madness. Even ‘Dus Bahane’ became a rage. I am told that parties don’t end without ‘Dus Bahane’ and ‘Chammak Challo’.

Even your other film Cash (2007) also had a great album…
Cash had a massive weekend. Partner (2007) released 2 weeks before Cash. And Cash opened bigger than a Salman Khan and Govinda film. It opened massively.

The title song of ‘Tum Bin’ had a similar tune as a song in Shah Rukh Khan’s delayed film Yeh Lamhe Judaai Ke (2004)…
I don’t know about it. But I remember people asking me about it. So apparently one of their (Nikhil-Vinay’s) songs in an earlier film never got out. So, they gave it to me. It was beyond my knowledge.

Did Tum Bin struggle to get theatres because of Gadar and Lagaan?
Yes. Also, 2 weeks after my film came Yaadein. We released alongside Aks. Dil Chahta Hai was to release a month later. Amid so many big films, a small film like ours made its way to the cinemas.