Actor Kangana Ranaut broke onto the Bollywood scene in 2006, with the film Gangster. But did you know that Kangana was not the original choice for the project, and that Chitrangda Singh had been cast in the role before her?
As Gangster celebrates its 15th anniversary, here's the story of how Kangana was called in as Chitrangda's replacement at the last minute, as told by the actor herself.
In an appearance on Anupam Kher's talk show in 2014, Kangana said that she had auditioned for a new project produced by the Bhatts along with several other girls, but was told that she was too young for the part. She said that after a few months had passed, she got a frantic call from director Anurag Basu.
She said, “Suddenly one day after two months, Anurag called me desperately and said they needed to leave for an outdoor shoot immediately and are unable to get through Chitrangda. So Anurag said, ‘Chalo chalo ab tumhara hi make-up karke thodi badi dikhayenge, tum hi kar lo film (Now we will do your make-up to make you look a bit mature, and now you only do the film’). That’s how I got Gangster.”
In an appearance on Aap Ki Adalat, Kangana told a slightly tweaked version of the story, and said that Anurag had first told her that Chitrangda had got the role. She said, "After waiting for two months, I rang him and he told me that I was not selected. Chitrangda Singh got the role but don't know what happened as her phone got switched off. She had to shoot outdoor, Seoul... Just a week before the outdoor shoot I got a call and he asked me whether I have a passport. I said no. He said if you can make a passport within a week then we will give you the film. I called my dad and took his help. Bhatt Sahab and Mukesh ji also helped me."
{{/usCountry}}In an appearance on Aap Ki Adalat, Kangana told a slightly tweaked version of the story, and said that Anurag had first told her that Chitrangda had got the role. She said, "After waiting for two months, I rang him and he told me that I was not selected. Chitrangda Singh got the role but don't know what happened as her phone got switched off. She had to shoot outdoor, Seoul... Just a week before the outdoor shoot I got a call and he asked me whether I have a passport. I said no. He said if you can make a passport within a week then we will give you the film. I called my dad and took his help. Bhatt Sahab and Mukesh ji also helped me."
{{/usCountry}}Kangana won several Best Debut awards for the film. She will be seen next in Thalaivi, a biopic of former Tamil Nadu chief minister, the late J Jayalalithaa. She also has Tejas, Dhaakad, Manikarnika Returns: The Legend of Didda, and a political drama based on the life of former prime minister Indira Gandhi in the pipeline.
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