Pahlaj Nihalani once recalled a cast change in the film ‘Aankhen’ and claimed that Divya Bharti rejected the film after learning that she would be paired opposite Chunky Pandey instead of Govinda. The former CBFC president and producer said that Divya, Pooja Bhatt and Juhi Chawla were first selected for the film, which was headlined by Govinda.
In a new revelation, Nihalani also claimed that Divya “threw a huge tantrum” before walking away from the project.
Divya Bharti at the photo shoot of the movie Aankhen
Speaking to Bollywood Thikana, Pahlaj Nihalani said that the original plan was to cast Divya Bharti, Pooja Bhatt and Juhi Chawla in Aankhen. He said the problem started after Divya was told that she would be paired with Chunky Pandey, while Ritu Shivpuri would be chosen opposite Govinda.Nihalani said, “Divya (Bharti), Pooja Bhatt and Juhi Chawla were originally supposed to do the film.
She decided that Divya should be paired with Chunky and Ritu Shivpuri should be opposite Govinda. When David told her about this, she was disturbed.He claimed that Divya then called him and objected to the casting decision. “She called me, and started threatening to do things. She threw a big tantrum, and called me up. I went to meet her, and she said, ‘You heard that I am the opposite of Chunky?’ I said yes. I refused to do the film,” Nihalani said.
Pahlaj Nihalani recalls his first meeting with Divya Bharti
In the same interview, Nihalani also spoke about his first impression of Divya before starting work on Aankhen. He said she contacted him through his secretary before the film went on floors.He said: “We had not started filming the film yet, and she contacted me through her secretary. I saw her photos and felt that she looked a little plump. I told the secretary that she should lose weight before starting work. In the meantime, we started filming.”Nihalani added that Divya eventually started shooting for the film just five days before the schedule ended. And after she left
Rajeshwari
He was brought in for this role.Aankhen, directed by David Dhawan, became one of Govinda’s popular comedies.
