It’s hard to pick a favourite film when you have a filmography as rich as Sharmila Tagore’s. But to the veteran actor, the late Yash Chopra’s Daag: A Poem of Love is among the movies closest to her heart. As the romantic drama, also starring Rajesh Khanna and Rakhee, completes 50 years today, Tagore says it was a joy to be a part of the movie that laid the foundation for Yash Raj Films. “I saw it as a great compliment to be a part of Yash’s first venture as a producer. Fifty years since, Daag and its songs remain so popular. Recently, Manoj Bajpayee [during the shoot of Gulmohar] was constantly singing Jab bhi jee chahe,” she laughs.

With the 1973 drama, Chopra stepped away from his signature romantic movies to explore the theme of bigamy. Regardless of the brave theme being explored on screen, the mood on the set was always vibrant, remembers Tagore. “Working on Daag, or even Waqt [1965], was a wonderful experience. As a director, Yash was a live wire and always full of Punjabi endearments.”