'Tumhare paas kya hai?'

'Mere paas maa hai....'

Many more such unforgettable dialogues, a taut story, incredible acting and great songs were what gave Yash Chopra's Deewar its immense repeat value. The film had another distinction: it cemented Amitabh Bachchan's super-successful 'angry young man' image.

Twenty-eight years later, Bachchan has signed another film with the same title. Though his character here is not called Vijay, AB cannot hide his feelings of nostalgia. "Deewar was one of the best films penned by Salim-Javed," he says. "I hope this film too will be a milestone in my career. But it is too early to compare [the two]."

Produced by Gaurang Doshi, Deewar -- Let's Bring Our Heroes Home, also stars Sanjay Dutt and Akshaye Khanna.

The heroines are yet to be finalised, but Shilpa Shetty, Bipasha Basu and Lara Dutta appear to be in the reckoning. The shooting of the film will commence in March. Deewar is aiming for an April 2004 release.

At a lavish function at Taj Land's End, in the Mumbai suburb, Bandra, Doshi launched his film with a unique audio-visual promotion revolving around 54 prisoners of war.

Bachchan, who was accompanied by son Abhishek, said he was honoured to be working with BR Films and Vinod Doshi. "Our [the Doshis and Amitabh] association goes back to Naastik. He was responsible for my working in a lot of other films as well. I remember discussing a few date problems and even pointing at Abhishek, who was about five years old then, and saying the way this film was was going, maybe Abhishek would complete it. I remember he almost had a heart attack. Today, I am working with his son who is a very articulate and fine man. I am also looking forward to working with Milan Luthria." 

Amitabh is all praise for his costars. "Working with Sanjay [Dutt] is always a pleasure. He is like an old friend, almost family. I have never worked with Akshaye [Khanna]. I remember seeing him in half pants on the sets of Amar Akbar Anthony [Bachchan's costar was Vinod Khanna, Akshaye's father]. I am honoured to work with him. He is one of the finest acting talents in our country."

Akshaye says, "It is a humbling experience to work with Duttsaab and Amitji, who was my dad's costar in so many films. It is a great beginning to a great film which is wonderfully scripted. I am looking forward to working in it. My character is of a son whose father is a prisoner of war. He is not a trained commando. He doesn't know how to help."

He also makes it clear that Deewar is not a war film. "It does not deal with war, like LoC or Border do. This deals with post war -- the human emotions and the impact of war. It is a very special film."

Sanjay Dutt concedes he signed Deewar because his friends were involved in the project. "I want to thank Gaurang for letting me do a third film with my God, Amitji."

Dutt clarifies his character is not negative despite its description in the promos as 'a man who did not want to help'. "I play a prisoner of war who orchestrates an escape from Pakistan. It is a fight between India and Pakistan, where India wins. Just like India will win on March 1 [referring to the India vs Pakistan cricket match in the World Cup]. It is a film based on raw emotions and power. That is its USP."

Summing up the film and its title, Dutt concludes, "The film is about a wall -- between a father and son, between two countries. No other title could have been more apt."