Did You Know Bhansali Dreamed Of A Different Star Cast For Heeramandi, Including Mahira & Fawad Khan?
Sanjay Leela Bhansali Once Planned To Cast Mahira Khan & Fawad Khan In Heeramandi Before Changing His Mind ( Photo Credit – Instagram; Facebook )

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is a renowned filmmaker in Bollywood. He marked his OTT debut with the Netflix series Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, released on May 1, 2024. The multi-starrer series features Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Sanjeeda Shaikh, Sharmin Segal, Richa Chadha, and Fardeen Khan in pivotal roles. However, Bhansali once revealed that they were not their initial choice. Read on to know more.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali Shared His Dream Cast For Heeramandi

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In a conversation with Lilly Singh during the premiere of Heeramandi in Los Angeles, Sanjay shared interesting insights into his OG cast for the series. He shared, “I had multiple casts in my mind. I thought about Rekha ji, and then Kareena Kapoor Khan and Rani Mukerji. I then also thought about Mahira Khan, the Pakistani actress, and Imran Abbas and Fawad Khan were also in my mind at one point of time. But then it all moved and changed.”

 

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Sanjay Leela Bhansali Praised The Actresses Of Heeramandi

SLB also praised their talent and appreciated their availability for an intense shooting schedule. “I am very happy with the cast. These are the girls who are extremely talented and beautiful. They had the time to give to the show because if they had been busy, you wouldn’t be able to give those 350 days that I shot for. You won’t be able to give that time and commitment because you are busy and everywhere with ads, and events. Popular actors don’t have time.”

More About Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar

Sanjay Leela Bhansali also mentioned that the idea to make Heeramandi had been in his mind for the last 18 years. He also initially planned to make it a feature film with Kareena Kapoor Khan, Rekha, and Rani Mukerji, but since the story was too long, he decided to turn it into a series of 8 episodes. For the unversed, the story of Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar revolves around the courtesans living in red-light district Heeramandi, Lahore, Pakistan.

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