Sanjay Dutt replaces Arjun Rampal in ‘Zanjeer’ remake
After Arjun Rampal walked out of ‘Zanjeer’ remake, Sanjay Dutt stepped in to play the iconic role of Sher Khan enacted by Pran in Prakash Mehra's 1973 blockbuster Zanjeer. Zanjeer starring Priyanka Chopra and Ram Charan Teja would go on floor very soon but Arjun’s date clash with Nikhil Advani’s film and so he has opted out of the movie. Sanjay who shares a great rapport with director Apoorva Lakhia will now portray the role of Sher Khan.
On Saturday afternoon, Arjun opted out of the project. "Yes unfortunately I am opting out of Zanjeer. The dates were clashing with Nikhil Advani's film. It was getting too cut-to-cut for me. The only window I had this year for Zanjeer was in July. But that got pushed ahead. Now it would be unfair of me to ask them to wait until next year for my dates. Sher Khan is an iconic character. Any actor would be happy to play him," the actor told.
Dutt was the first choice for the role but for some unknown
reason, Arjun was approached. Today’s Sher
Khan will be different from the character reprised by Pran in 1973. "This Zanjeer needs two well-built guys. The
confrontation between Vijay and Sher Khan in the original Zanjeer was
aggressive and violent but the brawn quotient was missing. Pran saab was
obviously not expected to fight bare-backed and Bachchan saab never
took off his shirt. This time Ram Charan Teja and his on-screen Sher Khan slug
it out bare-torsoed. That's why Arjun Rampal with his lithe build was selected.
Sanjay Dutt has lost so much weight now. He can very comfortably carry off the
hand-to-hand shirtless combat with Ramcharan. It would be the highpoint of the
film," revealed the source.
