Key Highlights:

  • No choreography, no rehearsal: Zeenat Aman revealed on India's Best Dancer Season 5 that she had no special preparation for the iconic 'Aap Jaisa Koi' track from Qurbani, simply being asked to groove on the spot.
  • Directors skipped choreographers entirely: Zeenat shared that Qurbani's directors, Dev Anand and Feroz Khan, didn't believe in having choreographers on set, a revelation that left the show's panel visibly surprised.
  • A song that made history: Sung by Nazia Hassan and composed by Biddu, the track was picturised on Zeenat and Feroz Khan, and went on to turn Nazia Hassan into a pop icon across South Asia.
  • Karisma Kapoor's childhood fangirl moment: Judge Karisma Kapoor recalled rushing to a Goa beach at 7 AM as a child just to watch Zeenat shoot 'Samundar Mein Nahake' from Pukar (1983).
  • A family connection to the sets: Karisma revealed her father, actor Randhir Kapoor, was also part of Pukar, with Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat shooting the song sequence in the mornings while the climax was filmed separately in the afternoon.

Veteran actress Zeenat Aman revealed that she was simply asked to groove during the shoot of the iconic track "Aap Jaisa Koi" from the 1980 film Qurbani.

As she appeared on the dance reality show India's Best Dancer Season 5, choreographer Geeta Kapur asked Zeenat, "When you were doing this song, did you have a special preparation?"

Reacting with a "Not at all," she shared that the film's directors, Dev Anand and Feroz Khan, did not believe in having choreographers on set, leaving everyone shocked. Zeenat revealed she was simply asked to groove on the track.

The real story behind the song and its singer: "Aap Jaisa Koi" was actually the singing debut of Nazia Hassan, a then-15-year-old Pakistani teenager living in London with her family. According to multiple accounts, Zeenat Aman herself first heard Nazia sing casually at a family gathering in London and was struck by her voice, later mentioning her to producer-director Feroz Khan. Khan was initially reluctant to use an untested teenage voice on a major film, but agreed to have composer Biddu — who had already found international success in the West with hits like "Kung Fu Fighting" — audition her. Nazia reportedly sang for Biddu in her family's living room while still in pigtails; Biddu composed the tune for "Aap Jaisa Koi" in about an hour, reworking an earlier melody, and the song was recorded at Red Bus Studios in London, with Nazia arriving straight from an O-level history exam to lay down the vocals.

The gamble paid off spectacularly. The song became a massive hit across India and Pakistan and helped make Qurbani the highest-grossing Bollywood release of 1980. At just 15, Nazia Hassan won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer in 1981 — presented to her by Raj Kapoor — making her both the first Pakistani and, to this day, the youngest-ever winner in that category. "Aap Jaisa Koi" also marked the first time a Pakistani singer had sung for an Indian film. Nazia went on to release Disco Deewane in 1981, which charted in 14 countries and became the best-selling Asian pop record of its time; she and her brother Zoheb Hassan eventually sold over 60 million records worldwide, and she is widely credited with helping launch the standalone pop music industry in South Asia — a genre that barely existed in the region before her breakthrough, since film soundtracks had dominated music until then. Nazia Hassan died of lung cancer in London in August 2000, at the age of 35.

Crooned by Nazia Hassan and composed by Biddu, the track was picturised on Zeenat Aman and Feroz Khan, and remains one of the most recognisable songs of that era in Hindi cinema.

Meanwhile, during the same episode, actress and judge Karisma Kapoor recalled how, as a child, she would rush to the beach at 7 am in Goa just to watch Zeenat shoot the "Samundar Mein Nahake" track from Pukar (1983). Karisma shared that her father, actor Randhir Kapoor, who was also part of the film, would go to the set only for the afternoon climax shoot, while Amitabh Bachchan and Zeenat filmed the song in the morning.

"When I was little, I think, Zeenat aunty, you may remember, the shooting of Pukar was taking place in Goa. My father was also in the film, and Amit ji, Zeenat aunty and Tina aunty were there. The climax was shot in the afternoon, so my father would go there. And in the morning, Amit ji and Zeenat aunty were shooting a song. They were shooting for the song Samundar Mein Nahake. And I was such a fan! I was so awestruck by Zeenat aunty that I would reach the beach at 7 every morning to watch the shooting," she said.

Karisma added that her mother, Babita, would question her early-morning trips, but she was determined not to miss a glimpse of her favourite star.