Aankhen

Ankhen (The Eyes) is a 1968 Hindi spy thriller produced and directed by Ramanand Sagar. After the surprise big hit of Farz as a spy thriller, Sagar came out with a bigger budget film in the same genre, shot in many international locations. This was the first Hindi film shot in Beirut. The film stars Mala Sinha, Dharmendra, Mehmood, Lalita Pawar, Jeevan and Madan Puri. It was estimated to be the most profitable Indian film of 1968 in India. Ankhen is considered to be a pioneer in Hindi spy films. It was initially planned to be shot when Dharmendra had just one film. But the director Ramanand Sagar had apprehensions of casting him since he was considered raw and was not yet a star; therefore, he recruited a huge star of the period, Mala Sinha, opposite him for marketing considerations. With the success of Phool Aur Paththar, Sagar decided to increase his budget and finalize Dharmendra as the leading man.