Salim Khan (right) and Javed Akhtar (left) were the writers of Zamana. (Photo: Express Archives)Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar, who wrote films such as Sholay, Deewaar, Yaadon Ki Baarat, among many others in the 1970s, were the highest-paid screenwriters of the Hindi film industry. After delivering several hits, Salim-Javed developed an unshakable confidence that no one could say no them. So, when a director refused to do their film, they were offended. Director Ramesh Talwar, who worked as an assistant with Yash Chopra for many years, and later directed films such as Doosara Aadmi, Baseraa, Sawaal, Duniya, among others, recently recalled an incident when he asked for the same payment as the writers, and left them shocked.In a chat with the YouTube channel Friday Talkies, Ramesh recalled that Salm-Javed wanted him to direct their film Zamana, because they wanted to cast Rishi Kapoor and Rajesh Khanna together, and Ramesh was friends with both of them. It was well known that Rishi and Rajesh did not get along with each other, because of Dimple Kapadia. “They didn’t get along because Dimple did her first film with Rishi and she got married to Rajesh. So, because of that, there was a little discomfort between them,” he said.But, Ramesh wasn’t interested in doing Zamana, as it was based on the ‘lost and found’ trope that was commonly seen in Hindi films in those days. Films like Waqt, Yaadon Ki Baarat, in which kids gets separated in their childhood and reunite as adults, all utlised the same trope. Ramesh shared, “Zamana was one of those ‘lost and found’ films. And I didn’t want to do that. When I told them I wasn’t interest, they said, ‘How can you say that? We’ve written an original story’. Salim-Javed wielded a lot of power at that time, so they said, ‘We have written this, how can you question us?'”ALSO READ | Vineeta Singh accuses Shraddha Kapoor’s jewellery brand of scamming customers on Shark Tank India: ‘Unhe thugga gaya hai…Ramesh said that he agreed to do the film on the condition that he get paid as much as them. “I said, ‘Okay, if you want me, then pay me the same as yourselves’. They were shocked. They said ‘Pagal ho kya? (Are you mad?)’ We charge Rs 14 lakh, Rs 7 lakh each’. So I said, ‘Give me Rs 7 lakh’,” he recalled. At this point, Salim-Javed said that they had directors who were ready to do the film for just Rs 2.5 lakh, and Ramesh told them clearly that they should go ahead with the alternatives.He continued, “I used to actively discuss their films with them, even as an AD, and I was always very honest about my reaction. So they knew that I know my job. But I just wanted to charge the money because at that time, I was being offered films for Rs 10 lakh. I was friends with them, so I would have agreed to do what they said, but they were giving very less money,” he recalled.But the film did not produce the desired results because it was delayed for years. In fact, it was actually released in 1985, years after Salim-Javed had parted ways. Ramesh said that the financers were not from the film industry and after shooting 80 percent of the film, they had to halt production because the financers said that their money was stuck elsewhere. In this mess, they lost the dates from Rishi and Rajesh, and the film got pushed. Salim-Javed separated in 1982.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd