Exclusive: Not Shah Rukh Khan, This Actor Was The First Choice For His Role In Rakesh Roshan’s Karan Arjun
Karan Arjun, which recently clocked 30 years will be re-releasing in the theatres on November 22. Directed by Rakesh Roshan, the film revolves around two brothers Karan, played by Salman Khan and Arjun, essayed by Shah Rukh Khan. But do you know that initially, the director approached Ajay Devgn alongside SRK for the respective roles? And both of them left the project. Reason: Shah Rukh Khan wanted to play Karan, and Ajay wanted to be Arjun. That’s when Rakesh Roshan approached Salman and Aamir Khan for Karan Johar. During an exclusive conversation with NDTV’s Abira Dhar, Rakesh Roshan revealed, “I went to Salman and Aamir and they said yes. Aamir said, ‘I am working on a film now. I will start the film after six months. I said okay.”
Later, Rakesh Roshan added that Shah Rukh Khan wanted to be a part of Karan Arjun and returned to the project. “But when Shah Rukh came to know that I was making this film with these two, Shah Rukh said ‘Bad for me… I am sorry though I am not convinced with the story but I will still do… it because I want to be with you,” revealed Rakesh Roshan.
After Shah Rukh Khan confirmed that he was going to feature in Karan Arjun, Rakesh Roshan broke the news to Aamir Khan. He told the actor that he had already planned on shooting the film the next month. “Aamir said ‘Don’t worry. You make it with him because if it is a good story it is going to make a nice film.’ So then Shah Rukh and Salman were there,” said Rakesh Roshan.
On Wednesday (November 13), Salman Khan dropped a special video on Instagram to celebrate Karan Arjun‘s re-release. The clip contained snippets from the cult classic, comprising the entire cast — Salman, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Mamta Kulkarni, Rakhee and Amrish Puri. “World Wide Re-Release on 22nd November,” read the side note. Take a look:
Karan Arjun was produced under the banners of Rakesh Roshan’s FilmKraft Productions. It was originally released in the theatres in 1995.