This is a common internet myth. While Amitabh Bachchan starred in Alibaba Aur 40 Chor (1980) with Zeenat Aman, he had no association with the 2004 version. The 2004 version's success is solely due to the dubbing team, not Bollywood A-listers.
Unlike tales where Alibaba is simply lazy, the 2004 film opens with Alibaba as an honest carpenter. He is poor but proud. His brother, Kasim (played in the film by Rauf Kurbanov), is the greedy rich merchant. The 2004 film spends a solid 30 minutes establishing the sibling rivalry, making Kasim’s death inside the cave (when he forgets the password) a genuinely tragic moment rather than a humorous one. alibaba aur 40 chor 2004
Due to copyright complexities between the Russian producers and the Indian distributors (Dheeraj Kumar's estate), the film is not consistently available on Netflix or Amazon Prime. However: This is a common internet myth
In the grand, chaotic tapestry of early 2000s Bollywood, there exists a sub-genre of films that were ambitious, expensive, and ultimately doomed by the changing tides of cinema. Standing tall among these "lost films" is Dharmesh Darshan’s Alibaba Aur 40 Chor (2004). Unlike tales where Alibaba is simply lazy, the
It was a film that tried to hold onto the flamboyant, theatrical roots of Hindi cinema just as the industry was pivoting toward sleek, realistic thrillers and the emerging multiplex culture. Today, the film serves as a fascinating time capsule—a swan song for the "Masala" fantasy genre of the 80s and 90s, repackaged for the new millennium.