If Karan Johar had followed through on his vision of Kalank, the film’s main cast would have featured Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn, Kajol and Rani Mukerji. Yesterday, the film unveiled its first teaser starring Sanjay Dutt, Madhuri Dixit, Varun Dhawan, Alia Bhatt, Aditya Roy Kapur and Sonakshi Sinha.
Previously, the filmmaker had indicated that Kalank was a passion project, nearly 15 years in the making.
Sanjay Dutt calls Madhuri Dixit ‘ma’am’ at Kalank teaser launch, invites laughter
In his 2016 autobiography, An Unsuitable Boy, Johar had written, “When my father was alive, I was writing a love story set in pre-Partition times. But the canvas was too large. It was supposed to have Shah Rukh, Ajay, Rani and Kajol. It was about two homes, and it had a Hindu-Muslim angle. It was a very strong subject, and would be called Kalank.”
“But at the last minute I pulled out of it. I started thinking of making a more intimate film. I wanted to do something bold,” he added, speaking of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), his third film as director.
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Dixit who plays Bahaar Begum in the film has already indicated that she replaced Sridevi, who died last year in an accidental drowning in Dubai. But Johar’s musings himself indicate that he imagined Khan, Devgn, Kajol and Mukerji in the roles now taken up by Dhawan, Kapur, Bhatt and Mukerji respectively.
Kalank, directed by Abhishek Varman, is due to be released on 17 April.
Kalank teaser launch pictures