Ayushmann should be realistic about who wants to work with him-Kunal Kohli

The furious filmmaker says ‘one-film-old’ actor should get a ‘reality check’

Bharati Dubey (BOMBAY TIMES; November 9, 2012)

Vicky Donor actor Ayushmann Khurrana has opted out of Kunal Kohli’s film, after the latter failed to cast an A-list actress opposite him. Ayushmann said, “I have decided not to work in the film. My condition when I agreed to work in it was that I needed an established actress.” Kunal, who is producing the film, had apparently promised the actor that a name bigger than him would be cast opposite him.

Reportedly, when the actor was called for another meeting, the names of not-so-established actresses were mentioned. The actor then decided not to do the film. An upset Kunal allegedly told Ayushmann that ‘you’ve become a star’. But the actor disagrees. “It is not that I have become a star, I am working with a newcomer in Rohan Sippy’s film. But in a romcom, pairing is very important. Since that wasn’t happening, I was forced to opt out of the project. Kunal is a very senior director, I would love to work with him.’’

Kohli v/s Khurrana
Not surprisingly, Kunal hasn’t taken the ‘rejection’ kindly. He says, “Ayushmann is one film old. He can have a wishlist of actresses, but he should be realistic about who wants to work with him as well. I have always cast actors according to the role. It is quite demeaning for anyone to say X or Y actress is small. No one should talk like that. I don’t put actors in categories. It’s sad that newcomers like Ayushmann are thinking like that. I never promise anyone any ‘list’ of actors. I also don’t decide my cast according to an actor’s demands. I cast according to the role.”

He adds, “Moreover, the budget of the film exceeded what I had in mind. I was looking at making a small-budget film with him (Ayushmann) and a new director. But since the budget didn’t work out, I decided not to make this film and concentrate on other projects instead.”

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