MGM originally planned to film Bhowani Junction on location in India. That is, until the Indian government started making demands seeking script approval and a big tax payment of 12% of the film's worldwide net profit. MGM changed their plans and decided to film instead in Pakistan - whose government was more accommodating and less demanding of the studio. And this made the picture the first Hollywood film produced in that country.
Ava Gardner said in her autobiography that the rape scene with Lionel Jeffries was very nasty for her to play, and traumatized her. She told that she immediately needed to see Lionel in private, just after. If not, she could have never see him again.
When Ava Gardner came to Lahore, there was only one reasonable hotel i.e. Falleti's Hotel. The suite in which Ava stayed has been named as "The Ava Gardner Suite". In its lounge one could see a beautiful large size, black & white portrait of a smiling Ava Gardner.
MGM was concerned about the confused, negative responses toward the film from preview audiences, which led the studio to re-cut the film, changing it significantly from George Cukor's original version. The movie's voice-over narration and flashback approach was hastily added. Cukor was unhappy with the final cut and later claimed it had been rearranged in "a most uninteresting way."
During the shooting of the movie, Ava Gardner attempted to seduce Stewart Granger, but he refused her advances because he was married to Jean Simmons. However, he and Gardner remained very close friends.