Sivaji Ganesan played the role of Superintendent of Police in Thangappathakkam.
Shakti became the highest-grossing film of 1983 and is the only film in which Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan starred together.
Thangappathakkam is a Tamil language film released in 1974. It was directed by P Madhavan and written by Mahendran. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan, KR Vijaya, Srikanth and Prameela in lead roles and is based on Mahendran’s play of the same name. The film is about a disciplined Superintendent of Police who is devoted to his job, while his son is rebellious by nature and grows to hate his father. Sivaji Ganesan reprized his role from the play.
The film was a huge box office success and ran for more than 175 days in theatres. It also became a silver jubilee film. According to reports, the film inspired makers of other languages and was remade in Hindi as well. In 1983, Ramesh Sippy directed the film and titled it Shakti. It had an ensemble cast of Dilip Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Rakhi, Smita Patil, Kulbhushan Kharbanda, Amrish Puri, Anil Kapoor etc.
The Hindi remake also followed the same plot as the Tamil film. Dilip Kumar plays the role of a disciplined Superintendent of Police devoted to the law. Once he arrested an important member of a criminal gang. In return, the dreaded criminal kidnaps his son, played by Amitabh Bachchan, and urges Dilip Kumar to return his gang members. Dilip Kumar refuses to turn him back to the gangster and says that he will not betray the law even if his only son is killed in the process. His son overheard the conversation and distanced himself from his father. After a few years, Amitabh Bachchan became a rebel by nature and became a gangster.
The Hindi remake was also a huge hit among the audience. Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan were both nominated for the Best Actor award, but Dilip Kumar was the eventual winner. Apart from this, it also won the awards for Best Picture, Best Sound Design and Best Screenplay. It also became the highest-grossing film of the year and is the only film in which Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan starred together.