Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s 1942: A Love Story is one of the most iconic movies of all time. Starring Anil Kapoor and Manisha Koirala in the lead, the movie was declared a flop upon its release but later emerged as an iconic tale. However are you aware that this patriotic drama was supposed to star Shah Rukh Khan?
Vidhu Vinod Chopra reveals the first choice for 1942: A Love Story
Recently while speaking at Kellogg School of Management, Chopra said that he had a history with SRK. He said according to HT, “When I was making 1942: A Love Story, I’d seen his work. Renu (Saluja, his then-wife) had edited a film called Maya Memsaab. He had a small role. So I offered him the role. I was the first person to offer him a role. He wasn’t a star then.”
Vidhu Vinod Chopra who at one point in time also wanted Aamir Khan to lead 1942 eventually went on to onboard Parinda (1989) star Anil Kapoor in it.
Did you know even Manisha Koirala wasn’t the first choice for 1942: A Love Story?
Many don’t know but the 12th Fail director had initially offered the role to Madhuri Dixit but she couldn’t allot her dates to him. It was then that Manisha was asked to audition for the role but was told, “Manisha, you were shit. You’re a terrible actress” by Vidhu Vinod Chopra.
Manisha Koirala herself revealed the same in her memoir Healed: How Cancer Gave Me a New Life. Manisha revealed, “This was not acceptable to me. The warrior woman inside me had been challenged. I requested him to give me twenty-four hours to come back for a second chance.”
According to Koirala, the filmmaker saw her the next day and said after a long pause, “If this is the heart and soul that you promise to put into each scene of my movie, I will sign you up instead of Madhuri Dixit. Manisha, yesterday, you were at zero. You are at a hundred today.”
Coming back to SRK and Chopra’s long-due collaboration, the superstar was also offered to play Sanjay Dutt’s role in Munna Bhai MBBS but he couldn’t do it. When again offered Chopra’s film 3 Idiots, Khan gave that a miss too.
