When Johnny Depp & Amitabh Bachchan Were Roped In For Mira Nair’s Shantaram(Photo Credit-Facebook/Imdb/CinemaRare/Twitter)
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Did you know Johnny Depp and Amitabh Bachchan could have shared the screen in a Mira Nair directorial? The director is known for merging the western world with India and has worked with many Hollywood stars. Reese Witherspoon, Lupita Nyong’o, Kate Hudson, and Denzel Washington are a few of the many others Nair has worked with.
All of her films have been critically acclaimed as they focus on the socio-cultural aspect of society. Monsoon Wedding, Mississippi Masala, The Namesake, Queen of Katwe, and Salaam Bombay! are a few examples of it. But did you know that she almost brought two of the biggest stars, Big B and Depp, together on the screen?
Back in 2007, reports came in that Mira Nair has roped in Johnny Depp and Amitabh Bachchan in a movie titled Shantaram, based on a novel by Gregory David Roberts of the same name. Mira spoke to ANI about the same back then and said, “It was an honour for me that Depp asked me to make the film. It will go on the floors in November. But right now I am busy with the release of The Namesake in India.”
Besides Johnny Depp and Amitabh Bachchan, the cast allegedly included Joel Edgerton, Helena Bonham Carter, Konkona Sen Sharma, and late actor Irrfan Khan. Even posters were made and Shantaram was even given a release date, which was 19th January 2009. Despite all the confirmation, the Mira Nair directorial never saw the face of light.
The reason behind this is said to be the writer’s strike that took place in Hollywood at that time. The Pirates of the Caribbean actor had revealed that the film was put on pause because of the strike. Depp also spoke about Amitabh and said that he “respects him a lot.”
The pause turned out to be indefinite until now. But neither Johnny Depp, nor Amitabh Bachchan is in it, and nor is it directed by Mira Nair. In fact, it has been turned into a TV series starring Charlie Hunnam, Radhika Apte, and more.
