Not Rajinikanth, But This Legendary Actor Was The First Choice For S. Shankar’s Superhit Film Robot?

Before veteran actor Rajinikanth was cast in S. Shankar’s sci-fi action film Robot, another legendary star was considered for the role.

- May 29, 2025 | 2:24 PM IST

Who Was S.Shankar’s Pick For Robot Before Rajinikanth?(Photo Credit –Instagram/Sun NXT)

S. Shankar’s big-budget sci-fi action film Robot, aka Enthiran, starring Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, was released in theatres in 2010. Eventually, it became a massive hit and got a big thumbs up from critics and audiences. Robot garnered immense praise for Rajinikanth’s performance, Shankar’s direction, and its top-grade visual effects.

Moreover, the film has an IMDb rating of 7.2/10. But did you know that neither Rajinikanth nor Aishwarya Rai Bachchan were the first choices for Robot? Read on to find out which actor and actress were initially supposed to be in the film.

This Legendary Actor Was The First Choice For Robot

According to a Times Now report, Robot was in the works since the 1990s, and the National Film Award-winning actor Kamal Haasan was the first choice to play the titular role in Robot. Not just that, the female lead was supposed to be played by Preity Zinta. However, that version of Robot was reportedly shelved long before the production kicked off. The massively mounted project was revived many years later, and Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan were cast. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Which Version Of Robot Would’ve Been Better – Kamal Haasan’s Or Rajinikanth’s?

Robot is a kind of film and a subject that relies heavily on visual effects. If the movie was made in the 1990s, it would have certainly been an inferior version of the 2010 film in that sense, simply because the film industry has witnessed a significant leap in VFX quality since then. The final version of the sci-fi film Robot undoubtedly benefited from these technical advancements.

Having said that, had Kamal Haasan played the lead role in Robot, he would have undoubtedly nailed it, although his approach would have been drastically different from Rajinikanth’s. Still, given the way Rajinikanth portrayed the role with his signature charisma, it’s hard to imagine anyone else in that part. Just like it’s difficult to visualize any other actor stepping into Kamal Haasan’s shoes for, say, S. Shankar’s Indian.

What Was Robot About?

Directed by S. Shankar, the sci-fi action thriller follows a brilliant scientist, Vaseegaran (played by Rajinikanth), who creates a high-tech humanoid robot named Chitti (also played by Rajinikanth). But the story takes a dramatic turn when Chitti develops emotions and falls in love with Vaseegaran’s girlfriend, Sana (Aishwarya Rai Bachchan). Chitti is manipulated by Vaseegaran’s jealous mentor, Dr. Bohra (Danny Denzongpa), and eventually goes rogue, leading to a dramatic showdown between man and machine. The film’s success paved the way for a sequel, 2.0, where Rajinikanth reprised his role(s) and Akshay Kumar played the antagonist. The sequel was released in 2018.