Filmmaker Sandeep Reddy Vanga revealed that Shahid Kapoor was not his first choice for the titular lead in ‘Kabir Singh’.
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In a recent promotional outing for his next film ‘Animal’, starring Ranbir Kapoor and Rashmika Mandanna, the South-Indian filmmaker confessed that not Shahid, but Bollywood A-lister Ranveer Singh was his first choice to portray the aggressive lover, Dr Kabir Rajdheer Singh, but the latter turned down the project, which he felt was ‘too dark’.
Vanga revealed that following the success of ‘Arjun Reddy’, he wanted to go ahead with his next film with Mahesh Babu, but since he had already signed another movie, he decided to make a Bollywood version of the Telugu blockbuster instead.
“I was continuously getting calls from Mumbai to do the remake. First, it was pitched to Ranveer Singh. I wanted to do it with him. But finally, he decided he will not do it because it was too dark for him at that time,” he divulged.
Vanga mentioned that he was also sceptical about casting Shahid, given his past track record. “Shahid’s track record was a concern; none of his solo films had done INR100 crore then, his highest was INR65 crore,” he said.
The filmmaker continued, “They used to say INR55 crore, 65 crore is the kind of business Telugu movies do. ‘Why are you doing it with this guy? If it was Ranveer, the box office would be higher’.”
“But I was always sure about Shahid, he’s a fantastic actor.”
Released theatrically across the country in June 2019, Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Kabir Singh’ – a remake of his Vijay Deverakonda-led Telugu title ‘Arjun Reddy’ – starred Shahid Kapoor in the titular role opposite Kiara Advani.
The romance drama opened to mixed reviews from critics, particularly negative ones for glamorizing misogyny and toxic masculinity, however, it was a major commercial success, emerging as the third-highest-growing Bollywood film of the year.
Shahid Kapoor admits ‘Kabir Singh was not a great guy’
