Yash Chopra, "If Chandni hadn't been a superhit, I would never have had the guts to make Lamhe!"

Excerpt, MOVIE magazine, December, 1991, interview with the great Yash Chopra; 
 

Yash Chopra, "For six years Lamhe was my dream project. I was dying to put it on celluloid. But I didn't have the guts to make it after Mashaal, Faasle, Vijay – in my lean period. Because it's a very bold, off-beat kind of film and the stakes were very high. But the resounding success of Chandni gave me the creative freedom to make Lamhe.

KUCH BHI KAR LO VINOD DOESN'T LOOK 20. SO I WAS STRANDED

Having decided to go ahead with Lamhe, the hero became a stumbling block. I had committed to Vinod that he'd do the Lamhe role – whenever I made it. This was much before Chandni but there was never any such bargain that Vinod-do-Chandni-and-I'll-give-you-Lamhe. The problem arose when I started scripting for Lamhe and realised that the role required a 20 year old. Now, kuch bhi kar lo, Vinod just can't look 20 today. So I had no choice but to think of somebody else for the role. Vinod is upset with me but he'll come around. After...

WHEN EVEN JACKIE AND ANIL COULDN'T FIT INTO MY CONCEPT I WAS BEGINNING TO WONDER IF I WILL EVER FIND MY HERO

After Vinod I considered Jackie. He sent me his photographs without his moustache. I liked the look. But after much consideration I decided that he too won't be able to look that young. I considered Deepak Malhotra too, Sridevi was game, but I got cold feet. An established hero would be a better bet since it was a big budget film. Anil meanwhile had been persistent...

... but as luck would have it, at that time itself, Anil broke his leg and had to sit at home for a long stretch of time. So he shaved off the mouche, we liked the look and agreed upon it. We even experimented further and changed the look of his original moustache. Even in those parts of the film where he does have a moustache, we've given Anil a differently cut mouche.