Ajay Devgn’s first in-house production movie, Raju Chacha, was the most expensive film in 2000. It featured an incredible cast of actors like Kajol, Rishi Kapoor, and Johnny Lever and was made on a budget of Rs 25 crore.
However, it miserably tanked at the box office, collecting merely Rs 20 crore. It rendered a considerable loss to producer Ajay Devgn, who later had to pay a hefty price.
During a recent conversation with Ranveer Allahbadia at his show, where Ajay Devgn and Rohit Shetty were guests, the Singham Again director revealed that the monetary loss of Raju Chacha had a huge impact on Devgn’s life and forced him to make movies left, right, and centre to make up for it.
“We made one more film, Raju Chacha that was not a big hit. That time, we spent a lot of money. He was the producer of the film, he lost a lot of money. After that, there was a phase where he did films left, right, centre. His mindset was that, ‘It’s okay if we have to bear the loss, but nobody else should suffer because of us. Every technician and other crew members should be paid. He hadn’t changed his car, even his mobile for years,” Indian Express quoted Rohit Shetty.
Johnny Lever Refused To Take Payment From Ajay Devgn For Raju Chacha
Talking about the film’s failure, Devgn chipped in, saying that Johnny Lever knew how big of a financial loss it was, so he refused to accept his payment. However, Ajay Devgn paid him forcibly. Johnny Lever, however, remembered Devgn’s kind gesture.
When Ajay approached Johnny Lever for a role in his production movie All the Best (2006), the 67-year-old actor put on a condition. Lever said that he would not take a penny for the film. “Johny Lever was like, ‘You guys paid me despite Raju Chacha was a flop, so this time, I am not going to take any money,’” Devgn said.
The movie Raju Chacha tells the story of three children of a wealthy widower, Siddhant Rai (Rishi Kapoor). After Siddhant’s death, his greedy relatives take the custody of his children, aspiring to loot all the wealth. Ajay Devgn then comes into their lives as Ranjit Rai, Siddhant’s long-lost brother, to save the children and their fortunes. The film was directed by Devgn’s late cousin brother, Anil Devgan.
On the work front, Ajay Devgn and Rohit Shetty are relishing the super success of Singham Again, the third movie in the Singham franchise. Within 15 days of its release, the film has collected over Rs 300 crore worldwide.
