Mumbai: Balaji head honcho Ekta Kapoor has revealed that she wanted to make a film on ‘Naagin’, but when the actress she approached for the lead moved to the West, the project got shelved.
On a podcast posted by Usha Kakade Productions’ YouTube channel, Ekta spoke about the success of ‘Naagin’ franchise on television.
“Mythology in India is deeply instilled in the people of this country. We grew up listening to these stories from our grandparents. Every kid in India knows that a Naagin takes revenge. Yet, we watch movies like Batman and Superman, but we don’t care to show our Indian folklore on our screens – be it television or film,” Ekta said.
Walking down memory lane, Ekta revealed, “I first wanted to make a film called Naagin. I had even gone to two big stars with the story – one said yes, the other refused. The actress who said yes went off to America. It was at that time that I decided to make Naagin into a television show.”
Ekta’s interview soon sparked speculatio
n about Priyanka being approached for the female lead.
One user wrote, “I think she is talking about Priyanka.”
Another was certain, saying, “She is talking about Priyanka.”
Ekta had shared in an earlier interview that she approached Priyanka and Katrina Kaif with the story of ‘Naagin’ for big screen.
“After The Dirty Picture, I decided to make Naagin as a film. I decided to take that concept to two actresses. I still remember, I went to Katrina and she told me, ‘After Dirty Picture, you want to make something pathbreaking’ and I said, ‘Yeah, I want to make Naagin.’ She looked at me and thought I had smoked something really nice. I think she wanted my dealer’s number, which of course is a joke. She was like, ‘Are you serious? You want to make something called Naagin in today’s time? Will people watch it?’ Then, I went to PC; it was around the time when she was going abroad,” Ekta was quoted as saying by Film Companion earlier.
‘Naagin’, produced by Ekta, is one of the most popular supernatural fantasy franchises on Indian television. It is the tale of shape-shifting serpents (icchadhari naagins) who can transform into humans, and are either driven by revenge or the duty to safeguard the mystical naagmani.
‘Naagin 7’ stars Priyanka Chahar Choudhary and Namik Paul as the leads, along with actors Eisha Singh, Alice Kaushik and Karan Kundrra in key roles.