"This guy is actually the best actor for this part."
Farhan Akhtar’s Don is one of Bollywood’s most popular franchises.
The series integrates wit, cunningness, and suspense to create memorable, pulse-racing stories.
Farhan directed Don – The Chase Begins Again (2006) which served as the first instalment of the series.
The film was a reboot of the classic Don (1978) which starred Amitabh Bachchan.
Farhan’s adaptation featured Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role. However, was he the first choice for the role?
Farhan Akhtar revealed that he initially thought about casting none other than Hrithik Roshan as the anti-hero.
Delving into what transpired, Farhan said: “I reached out to Hrithik and I told him that I am thinking about remaking Don.
“He said, ‘Sounds amazing’ and I said, ‘Let me write it and I will bring it to you’.
“While writing it, the only person whose face kept popping into my head was Shah Rukh.
“When I was writing, it felt like this guy is actually the best actor for this part but I had already spoken to Hrithik so I thought about what to do.
“I called up Hrithik and I told him that I have been writing the film and I am just feeling more and more that I should reach out to Shah Rukh.
“He said, ‘Farhan, you have to make your film, you have to make it the way you want to make it and if you are feeling he is the guy, please go ahead and call him. Don’t worry about me’.
“That is a very gracious thing.”
Farhan continued to state what he felt made SRK a superstar.
He explained: “He can talk about any topic and he will have his point of view on that. He is a good listener.
“He is well-read and he is also interested in people. He is curious, adventurous.
“He likes to have a nice time and he doesn’t like the weight of things too much. He is a fun guy to hang around with.
“There is an inherent charm he has that is magnetic and it is both on and off the screen.
“He is easy, it doesn’t feel laboured and that ease makes you feel comfortable.
“He works really hard and that has kept him where he is.”
SRK reprised the role in the sequel, Don 2 – The Chase Continues (2011).
Farhan is currently working on Don 3 but this time, Ranveer Singh is set to essay the lead role.
The film is also set to star Kiara Advani, who replaced Priyanka Chopra Jonas as the leading lady.
Farhan admitted that he did have talks with SRK about Don 3 but things did not materialise.
The filmmaker said: “The kind of script that we were writing, what I wanted to do with it…it’s too early to speak about it unfortunately so I can’t go into details.
“But it needed this next-generation actor in it.”
Farhan also shed light on why he chose Ranveer for Don 3.
He divulged: “He is mischievous, just full of energy, which is what this needs and he is.
“I feel when it comes to this aspect of his performance, it’s still untapped.
“Like I don’t think he has done a role like this.
“His characters, because of who he is, they have been written for him, for that reason, are very external.
“They are loud characters. They are big characters where he has the histrionics and everything.
“Don requires a very different kind of performance from him.”
“There is a certain holding everything inside that is needed for this character which I don’t think he has done.
“So I feel, for him also, it is a nice challenge to be able to do this.
“You will see him in a different way.”
Meanwhile, Farhan directed Hrithik Roshan in Lakshya (2004). The pair have also starred together in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011).
Farhan Akhtar also has Jee Le Zaraa in the works. However, since the film’s announcement in August 2021, it has yet to go on floors.
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