Manoj Kumar agreed to work in the film for a very small amount of money. This was due to an earlier promise he had made to the producer. By 1965 Manoj had become a huge star. Depsite this, he kept his word and did not charge extra.
After the runaway success of "Hariyali Aur Rasta" (1962), Manoj Kumar received a postcard reminding him of his promise to do two films with Prakash Pictures for the same remuneration of Rs. 11000. Kumar assured the filmmakers that he was a man of his word. Even though he was a big star by the time he did this film, the actor accepted a paltry fee of Rs. 11000 for it. This was the second collaboration after "Hariyali Aur Rasta" (1962) that involved director Vijay Bhatt, producer Shankarbhai Bhatt, Manoj Kumar, and Mala Sinha.
Filmmaker Vijay Bhatt's inspiration for the film was the real-life story of Albert Schweitzer, the German missionary surgeon who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1952. Bhatt had read Schweitzer's story in an issue of Reader's Digest. The film's success - it was a box office hit and won the Filmfare Best Movie Award - spawned remakes in other languages. It was remade in Tamil as "Puthiya Bhoomi" (1968) and in Telugu as "Doctor Babu" (1973).