Abhishek Bachchan turned down Ashutosh Gowariker’s offer to play Bhuvan in Lagaan: ‘I was way too raw…’

Lagaan, the epic sports drama–about a bunch of villagers competing against British officers in a game of cricket– released in 2001 and emerged as a blockbuster, even landing an Oscar nomination.

Abhishek Bachchan felt he was a misfit for Lagaan. He told Etimes, “I was way too raw and young to shoulder a film as epic as Lagaan. Of course, I knew it was going to be huge. But I was just not ready to be part of it.” However, now Abhishek is ‘glad’ that Aamir played the part and aced it.

He has no regrets about missing such an iconic film which will always be counted among the gems of Hindi cinema. In fact, it is ’embarrassing’ for him to talk about the projects he missed out on instead of focusing on the ones he did.

“Every film and role has its own destiny. Do you know how many actors were offered The Godfather before Marlon Brando?” Junior Bachchan opined.

On the occasion of Lagaan’s anniversary, Aamir Khan’s production house shared a series of photos from the film’s set and wrote, “A nostalgic throwback to ‘Lagaan’ as we celebrate its 22-year milestone, reliving the moments that made it an iconic part of the Indian cinema. ❤️.”

 

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Last year, as Lagaan completed 21 years, Aamir Khan hosted the cast, including Yashpal Sharma, Akhilendra Mishra, Raj Zutshi, Shankar Pandey, Raja Awasthi, Suhasini Mulay, Pradeep Ram Singh Rawat, and Amin Gazi, at his home. When Lagaan celebrated twenty years, Aamir thanked Ashutosh Gowarikar for giving him the opportunity to be a part of the film.

He had said, “Firstly, I want to thank Ashutosh (Gowariker), and the entire cast and crew, and the partners as well as the entire exhibitor sector for their support. I also want to extend my thanks to the seniors of the film industry who stood behind the project and showered so much praise on it.”