Boney Kapoor wanted to make Aamir Khan’s Ghajini with Salman Khan, says Madhu Mantena delayed Hindi remake rights: ‘I regret missing opportunity’

Recalling what went behind the casting of Aamir Khan in Ghajini and missing out on the opportunity to make it with Salman Khan, Boney Kapoor shared, “My representative down South approached the producer for the Hindi remake rights. He was told by Salem Chandrasekharan that they had been given as collateral to Allu Aravind, who had distributed the Telugu version of Ghajini, but he could buy the rights by paying off both of them.”

Boney continued, “I subsequently reached out to Madhu Mantena, who was friends with Allu Aravind, for the purchase of rights. Madhu kept assuring me, ‘Ho jayega (It will happen).’ Meanwhile, Pradeep Rawat, who played the antagonist, showed the Tamil film to Aamir Khan. For almost six months, while he was debating over whether he wanted to do the Hindi remake of Ghajini, Madhu kept me dangling. When Aamir finally consented, Madhu Mantena and Allu Aravind decided to produce the film themselves and I lost out. I wanted to remake Ghajini with Salman, and to this day, I regret missing out on the opportunity.”

ALSO READ | Dhruv Rathee slams Dhurandhar as ‘false propaganda’, switches off comments as actors defend film: ‘That was India’s situation’

The producer revealed that Salman had even agreed to do Sirf Tum without any fees or even a gift. “I approached him for a special appearance in Sirf Tum, the Hindi remake of the National Award-winning Tamil film, Kadhal Kottai. Sirf Tum featured my brother (Sanjay Kapoor) in the lead, opposite Priya Gill, and I wanted Salman to play a businessman, Prem, whom her brother-in-law wants her to marry.”

He added, “To my surprise, Salman readily agreed to do the film and shot with us for two days. Since we weren’t good friends, I would say it was a goodwill gesture because he refused to take any money or even a gift. A love story of two strangers, Sirf Tum was a surprise hit and I went back to him with another film.”

In the same interview, Boney Kapoor also shared that Salman Khan had suggested Katrina Kaif’s name for the female lead in Wanted, and not Ayesha Takia, who eventually played the role. “Salman had suggested Katrina Kaif’s name for the role of the heroine in Wanted, the Hindi remake of Pokiri. But since the character is initially ambivalent about her feelings for Radhe, I reasoned that it would be better if we cast an actress who had never been paired with him before. We toyed with several names, including Genelia D’Souza, before settling for Ayesha Takia,” he said.

Crediting Salman for saving his career twice – with the blockbuster hit Wanted and their successful venture No Entry, he reflected, “I was not doing well then, but No Entry, the highest grossing film of 2005, brought me back into the race. Anil too. And, many say Wanted was Salman’s comeback film. That’s not true. If anything, it brought me back as a producer in a big way.”