Sunny Deol never had it so good. His stars are shining and along with him; those who started their career with him are also on a roll. Rajkumar Santoshi, who began his directorial journey with Sunny Deol in Ghayal followed by a Ghatak, had a massive fall-out with the actor thereafter.
They are now back together for a sequel to Ghatak.
Recalling their fall-out Santoshi said, “Why dig up old issues? The important thing is, we are back together. The fallout, if you must insist, happened when Sunny Deol came to me with the proposal to make Bhagat Singh. He suggested his brother Bobby for the role. I think very highly of Bobby as an actor. I directed his debut film Barsaat for Sunny’s production house. But I just couldn’t see the same brooding intensity in Bobby that I wanted in my Bhagat Singh. I was looking for the Amitabh Bachchan from Zanjeer. Someone who could smolder in his silences. I found Bobby a little too flamboyant for the part. Shammi Kapoor is a fine actor. But he couldn’t play Bhagat Singh. Perhaps some other director could visualize Bobby as Bhagat Singh and may have done full justice to both the character and the actor. After all, Bobby is a very competent and sincere actor.”
Sunny did not take the sibling snub well. Recalled Santoshi, “When Sunny suggested we pool our two Bhagat Singhs together, I frankly told him that if his homework, research and spadework matched mine, then I was willing to hand over all my material on Bhagat Singh to him and make something else. But when he suggested I make the film with Bobby, I demurred. Despite all my admiration for Bobby, I could see Ajay and not Bobby as Bhagat Singh.”
Sunny got very upset. Santoshi feels guilty. “See, I owe Sunny a lot. He helped me immensely at the beginning of my career. He stood by me when I made Ghayal even though Dharam ji wasn’t too sure about the film. Sunny showed full confidence in me and I cannot forget or repay that. There were some mischief makers who were trying to poison Sunny’s mind against me. I get emotional just talking about him. If he calls me in the middle of the night, I’d be by his side. But as a director, I chose Ajay and I stand by my decision.”
When Santoshi made Lajja, he wanted Sunny for the role that Ajay Devgn finally did. “I knocked on his door although my relations with the Deols had already soured. Sunny agreed readily. Unfortunately, we had problems with his remuneration. That’s when Ajay stepped into the picture. I can’t forget the times I spent with him. When I wasn’t shooting, I’d spend my time on Sunny’s sets uncaring if people called me his chamcha.”
Also Read: SCOOP: Rajkumar Santoshi heads to Manali to narrate Ghatak 2 to Sunny Deol
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