Yesteryears popular actress Mumtaz had refused to work with superstar Amitabh Bachchan in his early days in Bollywood!

And guess who revealed this news...none other than Big B himself!

Leading entertainment channel Zee cinema will be showcasing Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan's famous works, including some of his films never shown before on television.

The series of "angry- young- man- films" started with 'Zanjeer', co-starring his future wife-to-be Jaya Bhaduri, and since then there has been no looking back.

In this series of 'Shanivaar ki raat Amitabh Ke saath' Bachchan himself shares some interesting never before heard anecdotes about his blockbuster movies.

Said Bachchan, "The lanky, dark, and intensely brooding persona did not go down well with directors who were looking for wise-cracking, fair, loverboys - the trademark of the Indian hero in the 1960s.

"Zanjeer was offered to Dharmendra and Dev Anand earlier. But they turned down the offer. I was recommended By Salim Javed. Javed Akhtar had seen my intense performance in one of the scenes in Bombay to Goa and he liked me a lot. In fact he was convinced that the role of Inspector Vijay Khanna should be played by me."

Big B recalled: "Since I wasn't very popular, many leading ladies of our industry refused the offer. Mumtaz was one of them. Even Jaya had turned it down initially but later agreed to do it very reluctantly."

Continued the Big B: "The first shot required me to say the famous dialogue 'Yeh Police Station hai tumhara baap ka ghar nahin'...since Pran Sahab was also instrumental in getting me the role of Inspector Vijay Khanna...I was very hesitant to say something like this to a veteran actor like him, " confessed Bachchan in a candid conversation with Zee Cinema.

The climax scene of 'Zanjeer' was shot in a swimming pool in Panvel. It was shot at night in the month of December when the climate was cold and icy.

"Ajit sahab very sportingly spent close to 6 hours in the water to shoot the scene in which he was to be kicked by me in to the water, " reminiscenced the legend of Bollywood as he walked down the memory lane.