Abhinav Kashyap, director of Dabangg fame and brother of Anurag Kashyap, has made some explosive statements on Salman Khan in recent times. After allegedly exposing the superstar, Abhinav has made some revelations about Ranbir Kapoor, who was the main lead in his film, Besharam. The director revealed how Ranbir had urged him to cast his then-girlfriend, Katrina Kaif, as the love interest and was firmly against Sonakshi Sinha for the role.
Ranbir Kapoor wanted then GF, Katrina Kaif as his heroine in Besharam, but Abhinav Kashyap was against it
In an interview with Bollywood Thikana, Abhinav Kashyap revealed that during the casting process for Besharam, the main lead of the film, Ranbir Kapoor, urged him to cast Katrina Kaif, who had expressed interest in the film. The actors were also reportedly dating at the time. Even the CEO of Viacom told him to consider Katrina for the role. But when he refused, the actress once asked what his problem was with her. However, Abhinav stated that he was looking for ‘Punjaban’, while Katrina had an English accent and was unable to speak Hindi either. Abhinav was quoted as saying:
“Katrina was not the choice. Ranbir had asked me, ‘She wants to do the film, so consider her’. I said, ‘She is not right for the part, I need a Punjaban from Delhi’. Katrina needed to work on her accent, and I wouldn’t have been able to hide it. If you see, all of her films before then had to make it clear that she was either an NRI or a foreigner, because she couldn’t speak in Hindi. It was either she had studied abroad or that she was living abroad.”
Abhinav Kashyap wanted to cast Sonakshi Sinha in Besharam, but Ranbir Kapoor refused
Abhinav Kashyap had launched Sonakshi Sinha opposite Salman Khan in Dabangg. Hence, he wanted to cast her again in Besharam. However, Ranbir was against it and said that he wasn’t ‘comfortable’ with her. Although the exact reason for this discomfort was not revealed by Abhinav, Sonakshi had once expressed her frustration, stating that many male stars had refused to work with her, claiming that she looked older than them, despite being younger than most of them. Abhinav quoted Ranbir’s refusal to work with Sonakshi and said:
” ‘Not Sonakshi, I’m not comfortable with her’. Now, the reason behind his discomfort you’ll have to ask him.”
Abhinav Kashyap talks about casting newcomers Sonakshi Sinha and Pallavi Sharda in his films
A few years before Besharam, Abhinav Kashyap had faced the same pressure of casting Katrina Kaif in a film. This time, it was Salman Khan who wanted Katrina as his heroine in Dabangg. Interestingly, much like the Besharam situation with Ranbir, Salman and Katrina were in a relationship at the time. However, newcomer Sonakshi was chosen as the female lead.
Similarly, Abhinav Kashyap discussed the role of the female lead being played by a newcomer like Pallavi Sharda in Besharam. He said that she had auditioned for the role and was cast on her merit. Ranbir Kapoor and his parents had also liked her in the audition. However, Abhinav said that the industry could not tolerate a newcomer as a leading lady, hence rumours were deliberately floated that the two had an affair. The Besharam director shared:
“We had decided that we will find a girl who fits the role through auditions. Pallavi Sharda auditioned, and everyone liked her, including Ranbir and his parents, and the Viacom management. She was purely there on merit, but the industry didn’t like it. Pallavi had done a small role in My Name is Khan, and the industry couldn’t tolerate a supporting actor getting the lead role in a major project over so many others.”
What are your thoughts on Ranbir Kapoor wanting Katrina Kaif as his love interest in Besharam over Sonakshi Sinha?
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