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Dilwale writer reveals Shah Rukh Khan was offered Arun Saxena's role played by Ajay Devgn; here's why SRK rejected it
Dilwale writer Karan Razdan revealed that Shah Rukh Khan was the first choice for Ajay Devgn’s role, but he turned it down due to creative differences in the film’s ending.
Ajay Devgn, Raveena Tandon, and Suniel Shetty starrer 1994 film Dilwale was a major box office hit, but its journey to the big screen wasn’t easy. The action/romance flick’s writer, Karan Razdan, recently revealed in an interview that the lead role, ultimately played by Devgn (Arun Saxena), was initially offered to Shah Rukh Khan. However, SRK turned it down due to creative differences regarding the film’s ending.
Recalling the casting process while speaking to Siddharth Kannan, Razdan shared: “The role that I gave to Ajay Devgn in Dilwale was originally written for Shah Rukh Khan. I had gone to his house to narrate the story, and he liked the script. He just told me one thing: ‘Karan, at the end, the heroine should go with the other guy.’ I refused to change my film’s ending. He said, ‘Then I won’t do it if I can’t sacrifice.’”
With Khan turning him down, Razdan approached Devgn, who immediately accepted the part. Suniel Shetty was then roped in as the second lead.
Razdan recalled another early setback when veteran filmmaker Subhash Ghai doubted the film’s potential. After watching 80% of the film, Ghai bluntly told him he could cry now if he wanted because he would anyway be shedding tears once the film hit the box office and bombed.
Ghai further criticized Devgn’s casting, claiming he wasn’t suited to playing a mentally unstable character. Additionally, Tandon was struggling with a series of flops, and industry insiders mocked Razdan, predicting his film would be her 13th consecutive dud.
Despite the skepticism, Dilwale thrived upon its release. The film took a massive opening and went on to become one of the top-grossing titles of the year. Razdan later recalled Subhash Ghai congratulating him and SRK admitting he was wrong for wanting to alter the film’s conclusion.
Directed by Harry Baweja and penned by Razdan, Dilwale remains a memorable romantic film of the ’90s.
A little trivia: Divya Bharti was initially cast as the female lead. Tandon was brought in after the former’s untimely demise.
Interestingly, Shah Rukh Khan did a movie in 2015 with the same moniker, co-starring Kajol, Kriti Sanon, and Varun Dhawan.
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