This Friday spells thrill at the box office as Ajay Devgn and R Madhavan's 'Shaitan' hits theaters. The dynamic duo is captivating audiences, with their film making a stellar net collection. Its opening weekend numbers suggest that the film could continue to perform well into the second weekend. With two National Award-winning actors at the helm, the film's success was almost a given, right?
Delving into Madhavan's career choices, there have been numerous instances where he turned down films that later emerged as runaway successes.
- Kaakha Kaakha
The name at the top of Madhavan's rejected film list is 'Kaakha Kaakha'. Released in 2003, director Gautham Vasudev Menon initially approached Madhavan for the lead role. However, due to certain undisclosed reasons, Madhavan declined. Suriya eventually took on the role and delivered a groundbreaking performance, propelling his career to new heights.
- Ghajini
In 2005, director A.R. Murugadoss presented 'Ghajini', a film that took the cinemas by storm. Initially offered to Madhavan, he declined the role as he wasn't fully convinced with the second half of the script. Suriya, who later accepted the lead role, captured audiences' hearts as Sanjay Ramaswamy. The film achieved blockbuster status, spawning a Hindi remake starring Aamir Khan.
- My Name Is Khan
Amongst the plethora of Shahrukh Khan's successful films is the critically acclaimed 'My Name Is Khan'. Reports suggest that R Madhavan was the first choice for the film but had to decline due to scheduling conflicts with Rajkumar Hirani's '3 Idiots'.
- Nanban
Madhavan won hearts as Farhan Qureshi in '3 Idiots'. When the Tamil remake titled 'Nanban' was conceived in 2012, Madhavan chose not to reprise his role. The part subsequently went to Srikanth, who excelled in his performance. Madhavan has stated he doesn't favor working on remakes of his films.
- Fanne Khan
Madhavan was also in talks to join the cast of 'Fanne Khan' alongside Aishwarya Rai and Rajkummar Rao. However, his busy schedule couldn't accommodate the film, despite his affinity for the script. Released in 2018, 'Fanne Khan' featured not only Aishwarya and Rajkummar but also the versatile Anil Kapoor.
Seeing Madhavan in all these super hit movies would surely have been a treat to fans, but as they say, in big cities, such small things happen from time to time.
