Mumbai: Rajpal Yadav, gearing up for the release of ‘Bhooth Bangla’, recently opened up about a lesser-known episode from his career, revealing how a misunderstanding with Shah Rukh Khan cost him a role in ‘Om Shanti Om’.
Asked whether he has ever regretted turning down roles, Rajpal shared with Zoom that he was initially considered for the role of ‘Billu Barber’ in Priyadarshan’s film, which was eventually played by Irrfan Khan.
Reflecting on the incident, Rajpal revealed that he later realised he had unknowingly upset Shah Rukh after allegedly declining a role in ‘Om Shanti Om’.
The actor further revealed that he learned about the misunderstanding while he was on the sets of ‘Billu Barber’.
“Billu Barber ka pura production dekhte the Juhi Chalwa ke brother. Voh shaam ko bethe the hum toh mujhe gale mile aur bole bhai (SRK) se mil lena. Bhai aapko bahut pyaar karte hain. Jab hum Kal Ho Naa Ho main kaam kiya, toh Shah Rukh bhai ne bola tha kabhi ek lamba, koi badiya track karenge kyunki ek scene main itna maza aaya. Maine kaha main toh dupehr main hi mila tha, Unhone kaha thoda kuch confusion hai. Toh maine kaha kya? Bole voh role likhwaya tha unhone aapke liye aur voh aapne mana kardiya keh ke time nahi hai (The entire production of Billu Barber was being handled by Juhi Chawla’s brother. One evening, he met me, hugged me, and said, ‘You should meet bhai. He loves you a lot. When we had worked together in Kal Ho Naa Ho, Shah Rukh Khan had told me that someday we would do a longer, substantial track together because he had enjoyed doing that one scene with me so much. I said I had met him only that afternoon. Then he said there seemed to be some confusion. I asked what happened. He told me that he had specifically asked for a role to be written for me, but apparently I had declined it saying I did not have the time),” Rajpal said.
The actor shared that he immediately contacted his manager to check if any such incident had taken place.
He said, “Unhe bhi pata nahi tha. aur mujhe bhi nahi pata tha. Pata laga ki vahan pe kisi ne bitching karke aur Om Shanti Om ke liye meri tasveer dusri pesh kardi. Pata bhi nahi SRK ko aur mujhe bhi pata nahi. Toh yeh Bollywood hai ismein aise 10-20 kisse ho jaate hain. Aur main aur Shah Rukh Khan gale mile uske baad jaise koi lafda hi nahi (He did not know about it, and neither did I. It turned out that someone had been bi**hing there, and I was presented negatively in front of Shah Rukh bhai for Om Shanti Om. Neither Shah Rukh Khan knew about it, nor did I. So this is Bollywood, 10 to 20 such incidents happen here. After that, Shah Rukh Khan and I hugged it out as if there had never been any issue at all).”
Directed by Farah Khan, the film featured Shah Rukh in the lead role and marked Deepika Padukone’s Bollywood debut.
The film, made on a budget of Rs 38 crore, emerged as a blockbuster, minting Rs 148 crore worldwide.
Meanwhile, ‘Bhooth Bangla’ is scheduled to be released in theatres on April 17, with paid previews beginning the evening earlier.
