From Deepika Padukone to Ranbir Kapoor: 5 stars who lost out on successful films

We have all heard the rumours. Kareena Kapoor let Kal Ho Na Ho go and it was Preity Zinta’s gain. Hrithik Roshan turned down the role of Akash in Dil Chahta Hai and it went to Aamir Khan. The list is endless. And so, here’s an updated list of roles that prominent actors turned down:

Deepika Padukone /Prem Ratan Dhan Payo

Deepika was Sooraj Barjatya’s first choice for this logic-defying traditionalist blockbuster. And to the humble director’s credit he pursued his muse relentlessly. But Deepika couldn’t find the dates. Some sources have said she couldn’t connect with her role.

Parineeti Chopra/Piku

Shoojit Sircar went to Parineeti Chopra to play Big B’s beleaguered daughter in Piku. But she argued that she was already doing a father-daughter film Daawat-e-Ishq. It is then that Sircar shrugged and rang Deepika’s doorbell. As luck would have it, Daawat-e-Ishq bombed and Piku was a cult success. Do we hear Deepika laughing all the way to the awards?

Ranbir Kapoor/Goliyon Ki Raaslila Ram Leela

This was the most stunning swap in the history of casting. Ranbir was to do Sanjay Bhansali’s Goliyon Ki Rasleela..Ram Leela while Ranveer Singh had been finalised for Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet. Overnight, Kashyap replaced Ranveer with Ranbir, without informing the former. As Ranveer slipped into Ram Leela, it changed the destiny of his career.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan/Goliyon Ki Raaslila Ram Leela

Sanjay Bhansali was keen to get his favourite actress on board to do the item song in Ram Leela. But when Aishwarya heard the lyrics of the item song Thappad se darr nahin lagta pyar se, she fled. (For the uninitiated that was the famous line from the Salman Khan starrer Dabangg). As luck would have it Aishwarya was replaced by Priyanka for the item song. And the words of the song were also changed.

Freida Pinto/ NH 10

Freida was all set to make her Bollywood debut with Navdeep Singh’s gritty thriller. Freida was keen to begin with. Then, we hear, she wanted changes in the script. The producers packed her off and got Anushka Sharma on board. This film changed the course of Sharma’s career and also launched her career in production.