Janam was created after Bhatt's acclaimed early films Arth (1982) and Saaransh (1984), and established him as a promising new director of the Indian film industry, long before he ventured into more commercial endeavours.
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This film was followed by other films with similar themes from Bhatt's personal life, including Naam (1986), Zakhm (1998) and Woh Lamhe (2006), films for which he provided the story.
On 1 January 1989, while performing a street play, Halla Bol (Attack!), during Ghaziabad municipal elections, in Sahibabad's Jhandapur village (near Delhi), the Janam troupe was attacked by political hoodlums of the Indian National Congress.