Shah Rukh Khan, Farah Khan locked Arjun Rampal in a bathroom, narrated Om Shanti Om script: ‘He said no’

Farah Khan recalled how she and Shah Rukh Khan pitched Om Shanti Om to Arjun Rampal during a New Year’s Eve party at SRK’s house, after several actors had refused to play the negative role in the film.

By: Entertainment Desk

Chennai | September 9, 2024 03:06 PM IST

3 min read

Arjun Rampal, Deepika Padukone and Shah Rukh Khan in stills from Om Shanti Om. (Pic: IMDB)

In an earlier interview, Arjun Rampal referred to his negative role in the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Om Shanti Om as a “turning point” in his career, as it allowed filmmakers to see him in a new light. Although he was grateful for the role, he initially refused it when director Farah Khan and Shah Rukh pitched it to him during a New Year’s Eve party at SRK’s house. In a conversation with Komal Nahta, Farah shared an amusing story of how they pitched the role to Arjun in SRK’s bathroom, after several actors had already turned it down.

Though Farah didn’t name Vivek Oberoi, the Saathiya actor had revealed in past interviews that he had declined the negative role in Om Shanti Om to star in Shootout at Lokhandwala. Discussing the casting process, Farah explained, “We cast Arjun Rampal at the last minute after other actors refused the role. Me and Shah Rukh both felt that Deepika’s character should be in love with a good-looking man. He can’t be Prakash Raj. He has to look like a hero. So, when the last actor refused the role…we had to start shooting with his negative character from January 6th and we didn’t have an actor to play that role.” Deepika played the role of a famous actress in the film.

Sharing the hilarious story of how they pitched the role to Arjun, Farah said, “On December 31, at the New Year party at Shah Rukh’s house, we spotted Arjun and caught him. Shah Rukh and I locked him in a bathroom and narrated the story to him. After hearing it, Arjun said ‘no.’ He thought the character was too villainous, especially with scenes like burning the girl. I think it was Shah Rukh who eventually called him back and convinced him to take the role.”

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Farah also revealed that Arjun’s final look for the film was decided at the last minute. “Two days before the shoot, we did a costume fitting. We weren’t even planning on keeping the moustache, but one day Shah Rukh and Arjun showed up with Arjun sporting a moustache. I told him, ‘You look like Vinod Khanna, keep it.'”

Om Shanti Om marked Deepika Padukone’s debut and was produced by Gauri Khan under Red Chillies Entertainment. It went on to become the highest-grossing film of 2007.

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