‘Ranveer Singh and Hrithik Roshan passed on Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Aamir Khan said it isn’t for me’: Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra on casting Farhan Akhtar

As Bhaag Milkha Bhaag completes 10 years, here's revisiting director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's story about approaching Hrithik Roshan, Aamir Khan and Ranveer Singh for the titular role, before casting Farhan Akhtar.

Farhan Akhtar in a still from Bhaag Milkha Bhaag.

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The sports drama Bhaag Milkha Bhaag ushered in a new era of Bollywood biopics, and established Farhan Akhtar as a leading man. As the movie turns 10 today, here’s looking back at how director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra came up with the idea — or, rather, how it landed in his lap — and the trouble that he went through in finding the right star for the main role.

In his autobiography, The Stranger in the Mirror, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra revealed that he was gifted a copy of Milkha Singh’s memoir by Aditya Dhar, who would go on to direct Uri: The Surgical Strike several years later. Fascinated by the athlete’s story, Rakeysh flew to Punjab to meet him, and proceeded to write the script.

Also read | Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra says Sonam Kapoor did Bhaag Milkha Bhaag for Rs 11, Milkha Singh gave rights for Re 1: ‘And Farhan said…’

However, as acclaimed as Farhan’s performance eventually was, he wasn’t the first choice for the role. Before taking the project to him, the filmmaker first approached more conventional stars, and one up-and-comer. “I narrated the story to Hrithik Roshan, whom I have always seen as a very intense actor. Hrithik sent me a beautiful message, ‘You’ve completely screwed my life upside down.’ However, he passed it as he was already committed to his franchise, Krrish,” he wrote. Next, he approached Aamir Khan, who also turned the film down, saying simply, “Yaar Mehra, this one is not for me.” Aamir and Rakeysh had worked together on the massively popular film Rang De Basanti just some years ago.

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The director then auditioned actors for the role, and was delighted to discover that Ranveer Singh was perfect for it. “He was thrilled with the part and so was I with his audition. But then even he passed it for reasons I will never know. I have always respected the decisions of another artist – we all have our own head spaces,” he wrote. Eventually, he approached Farhan with the film, and after a 15-minute narration, they shook hands on it.

Based on the life of champion athlete Milkha Singh, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag also starred Sonam Kapoor, Divya Dutta, Meesha Shafi and others. The film was a critical and commercial success, making over Rs 200 crore worldwide and earning several major awards.

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