From Ishq, Main Khiladi Tu Anari To Jaan-E-Mann: 22 Films For Which Shah Rukh Khan Was The FIRST Choice!

In the last article, we spoke about the films for which Shah Rukh Khan was NOT the first choice, and now we come up with 23 films which were first offered to the superstar, but he didn’t sign on for them due to the reasons best known to him. While the popular films which Khan rejected are mentioned below, we would majorly focus on the films that were offered to Shah Rukh Khan first that not many would be aware about. And they include some interesting names apart from the usual ones like Munnabhai MBBS, Lagaan, Robot, and 3 Idiots.

Check out the list below of the films that SRK rejected:

1. Ishq:

A casting coup of sorts was supposed to happen when director Indra Kumar approached Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan for the film. While Aamir Khan came on board, Shah Rukh Khan was reluctant to do the film, as in the early days of his career, he didn’t want his filmography to be filled with two hero films. Ishq eventually got made with Aamir Khan and Ajay Devgn.

2. Hero No. 1:

David Dhawan had narrated the script of a comedy film to Shah Rukh Khan, which the actor rejected thinking that it wasn’t something that would suit his image among the audience. Later on David narrated the same to Govinda and titled it Hero No.1, thereby taking the No. 1 franchise forward. With Shah Rukh Khan, the same story was supposed to be made with a different name.

3. Yes Boss:

While Shah Rukh Khan was always the first choice for this film, the superstar had initially rejected the role citing date issues, following which the producers approached Saif Ali Khan to play the lead who wasn’t really convinced with the script. Finally the film got made with SRK in lead.

4. Main Khiladi Tu Anari:

Banking high on the success of Khiladi, the producers wanted to take the franchise to the next level by signing Shah Rukh Khan alongside Akshay Kumar aka. Khiladi in the film. Khan, though loved the script was reluctant to do the film because he felt that the two didn’t really call for two gen-next stars. Eventually, he left the film and was replaced by Saif Ali Khan.

5. Border:

Shah Rukh Khan had become one of the most sellable names of the Hindi film industry in a short span of time and every producer wanted to work with him. JP Dutta approached Shah Rukh Khan for the character of Dharamvir Singh in the film, however the superstar rejected the role as he felt the impact of his character would be diluted by others, who have a stronger role. The role was eventually done by Akshaye Khanna.

6. Taal:

After working on Pardes, Subhash Ghai wanted to work with Shah Rukh Khan yet again in a quintessential love story – Taal. After several discussions, Khan didn’t take up the role citing script issues, and was replaced by Akshaye Khanna.

7. Purab Ka Laila Paschim Ka Chaila:

The film, which never released in the theatres was planned with Shah Rukh Khan and Suniel Shetty in lead, however Khan opted out of the film owing to script issues. The film later on went on floors with Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty, but the shoot was halted due to monetary problems. Till date, it has not seen a release.

8. Soldier:

After working on Baazigar, Abbas Mustan made several attempts to team up with Shah Rukh Khan again. The 1998 action thriller, Soldier was initially planned with Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in lead, however eventually got made with Bobby Deol and Preity Zinta. The reason for Shah Rukh Khan’s exit from the film is not known yet.