New Delhi:
Mukesh Khanna, best known for his iconic portrayal of Shaktimaan, recently revealed that he turned down an offer from Yash Raj Films’ Aditya Chopra to sell the rights to the beloved superhero character. While the actor acknowledged that Pushpa 2 star Allu Arjun could potentially make a fitting choice to lead a Shaktimaan reboot, he made it clear that he could not endorse Ranveer Singh for the role, despite the actor’s considerable talent.
During a conversation with Siddharth Kannan on his YouTube channel, Mukesh Khanna shared that Aditya Chopra’s team had reached out to him about a decade ago, asking for the rights to Shaktimaan. He shared that he immediately rejected their offer and said, “Ten years ago, I was contacted by Aditya Chopra’s group. They asked me if I could give them the rights to Shaktimaan.”
Mukesh Khanna also mentioned that around the same time, a fan-made image of Ranveer Singh as Shaktimaan surfaced on social media. “At that time, coincidentally, Ranveer Singh’s fan-made picture as Shaktimaan surfaced on social media. And then, suddenly, I got this call for the rights. I said, ‘Rights nahi dunga main (I won’t give the rights).” The veteran actor put forth a counteroffer. “I told them, ‘Tell Aditya, whoever he is, if you want to make it, make it with me’. I didn’t want to give away the rights only for them to make a disco drama. I refused.”
Mukesh Khanna expressed that Allu Arjun could be a suitable candidate to take on the role of Shaktimaan. “I think I have to watch more Allu Arjun films. Also, let me go out on a limb and say that he has it in him to be Shaktimaan. I am not saying he is doing it or anything. I’m just suggesting that it would look good on him. He has the personality to pull it off,” he said.
However, Mukesh Khanna made it clear that he was not convinced about Ranveer Singh playing the iconic character. He concluded, “An actor can do all kinds of roles but Shaktimaan isn’t just any role. It isn’t just enough to be an actor to play Shaktimaan. You need to have the correct face. I am stuck at his (Ranveer’s) face, I am not stuck at his talent. People remind me that he has done so much work. He has done Khilji. I told them, ‘He is a good actor but I am not convinced with his face and his appearance.”
