Mumbai: Actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who was earlier supposed to play Mastani in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Bajirao Mastani’, says she does not regret not being a part of the magnum opus project.
Considered as his dream project, Bhansali was keen to cast Salman Khan and Aishwarya after the success of his home production “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam” in 1999.
On being asked about the upcoming film, which now stars Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone, the 41-year-old actress said, “Even at the start of this movie (‘Bajirao Mastani’), there was a certain casting that he was looking for.
If that was to come to be… you all know that there was a possibility of me being ‘Mastani’ if there was a certain Bajirao (referring to Salman) he was trying to cast.
“But if that did not come to be then we had openly talked about it. It is not something to think over… fret over.
Every film has its destiny and finds the way it is meant to be,” Aishwarya said.
The “Guru” actress, who will be seen after a gap of five years in Sanjay Gupta’s “Jazbaa”, said she even teased Bhansali on finally getting “Bajirao Mastani” in place.
Aishwarya and Bhansali have earlier teamed up to deliver hits “Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam” and “Devdas”.
On her equation with Bhansali, she said, “It is a very close bond that I share with him and because of that creativity we share close personal bond. My relationship with certain filmmakers is personally strong. And it is not only about work,” she said.