We all remember Slumdog Millionaire. It’s pretty hard to imagine the movie without Anil Kapoor but did you know that superstar Shah Rukh Khan was first offered for this role but King Khan turned down this offer.
In a throwback interview at Jonathan Ross’ chat show, while promoting his 2010 film My Name is Khan, Shah Rukh opened up about why he ended up turning down the role. He also said director Danny Boyle was his friend and felt bad about the actor’s decision.
The role of “Kaun Banega Crorepati?” host Prem Kumar later went to Anil Kapoor. Shah Rukh Khan had hosted the show in 2007.
“Danny is a friend and I was very keen that the film be made, because I think that it’s a very interesting topic,” he said. “I didn’t do it because the host is a little bit of a cheat, and he was a little mean, and I’d already done the show so I felt if I do it people will feel I do the same thing. It was a great film,” he said.
Slumdog Millionaire launched the careers of Hollywood stars Dev Patel and Freida Pinto. Anil Kapoor too got a role in Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol and the TV show 24 after Slumdog’s success.
Slumdog Millionaire was set in India. The movie was an onscreen adaptation, loosely based on the book Q & A by Vikas Swarup. In 2009, the film swept the Oscars. It won in categories such as Best Director for Danny Boyle, Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing for Resul Pookutty and AR Rahman won the Best Original Score and Best Original Song for Jai Ho.
Coming back to Shah Rukh Khan, the actor stepped into the Indian entertainment industry with the 1988 series Fauji. He was also a part of Doordarshan’s TV show Circus. The actor also hosted several TV shows including Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain?, Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout, India Poochega Sabse Shaana Kaun? and 2 seasons of Ted Talks India.
