Signing you in

Before Deepika Padukone was cast in Happy New Year opposite Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was director Farah Khan’s first choice for the role. However, the actor, who had just returned to cinema after giving birth to daughter Aaradhya chose to decline the film as she would be cast opposite SRK, and not husband Abhishek Bachchan, who was also a part of the film.

The 2014 heist comedy eventually became a box-office success with Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and Abhishek Bachchan in the lead, but Aishwarya chose not to be part of it because she felt pairing her and Abhishek with other actors would create an awkward dynamic on screen.

An old interview of Aishwarya has resurfaced, in which she explained why she declined the offer despite believing that the film would have been a perfect way to return to the big screen after taking her maternity break.

In a 2018 conversation with journalist Rajeev Masand, Aishwarya admitted that Happy New Year seemed almost tailor-made for a comeback.

“So when I was asked for that movie, technically, it is a perfect comeback after motherhood. If you get to do a role like that in a big blockbuster like that, and have that release and that assured box office, you can already see that coming. Oh my God, I would have got to make that statement. I mean, what a movie to do.”

However, there was one problem: Abhishek was already part of the film. Aishwarya felt the casting would not work because she and Abhishek would not be paired with each other, while her character would have been romantically linked to Shah Rukh Khan.

“But I don’t know how that would necessarily roll out with AB (husband Abhishek Bachchan). I mean, he was already there. So I was telling Farah, if you ask me individually, I would of course do it. I mean, Manwa Lage would be fabulous, but I am like, it doesn’t work in that dynamic. And why have that area of conversational debate when you are watching a movie?”

When Aishwarya turned down Happy New Year because of Abhishek by u/Icy_Discipline_6975 in BollyBlindsNGossip

She acknowledged that walking away from such an opportunity was not easy professionally, but said she ultimately made the choice as Abhishek’s wife.

“So walking away as a professional and as an actor wasn’t easy, but as a wife, you narrowed down to that decision,” Aishwarya concluded.

In another conversation with NDTV, she had said, “Yeah, I was offered the film, and it did seem like quite a fun trip. I knew we would have a blast doing it, and it was going to be a fun experience. But it wouldn’t have worked out with both me and Abhishek in the film, and not being paired with each other.”

She added, “We wouldn’t be cast opposite each other. It will be really really weird, right? That’s why I had to decline it”.

ALSO READ: Master Ravi: Child star who challenged Shashi Kapoor, earned Rs 3,500 daily as ‘Junior Amitabh’

Happy New Year was not the only successful project Aishwarya has reportedly been offered before the role eventually went to another actor. Over the years, reports have linked her to films including Troy, Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Krrish and Bajirao Mastani, although the reasons attributed to her for declining these projects vary and are not confirmed by Aishwarya herself.

Aishwarya and Abhishek tied the knot on April 20, 2007, and welcomed their daughter Aaradhya in November 2011. After their wedding, the couple appeared together in just two films—Sarkar Raj in 2008 and Raavan in 2010. They have not shared the screen in another film since. Aishwarya returned to acting with Jazbaa in 2015 after taking a break from films.

She was last seen on the big screen in Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan II, which released in 2023.

Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.