To think that Badshah could have entered the acting scene to loud cheers, but it didn’t quite turn out that way. The singer-rapper might have made his acting debut in Karan Johar’s short film for the hit anthology series ‘Lust Stories’, had he not declined the offer. In a recent conversation, the ‘Let’s Nacho’ hitmaker revealed that Johar offered him Vicky Kaushal’s role in the segment he created for the series. He was also offered Diljit Dosanjh’s role in ‘Good Newwz’. However, he declined the role that went to Kaushal because he “took himself too seriously” and didn’t want to play a man who couldn’t sexually satisfy his wife. Notably, the role offered to him in ‘Good Newwz’ was of a man who couldn’t have children.
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In a conversation with Lallantop, Badshah recalled the offers he received from Karan Johar to make his acting debut under his banner. “I was offered Vicky Kaushal’s role in ‘Lust Stories’… I thought Karan sir was joking. He said, ‘There’s a role of a guy who can’t satisfy his wife.’ And I was like, ‘Yeh kya baat hui sir? Main aisa lagta hoon kya (Do I look like the kind of guy who can’t satisfy his partner)?’”
Taken aback, the interviewer asked if the singer actually said that to Johar, and Badshah confirmed it. “Yes, genuinely. We were judging a show called ‘Dil Hai Hindustani’, and he was sitting right next to me. He said, ‘There’s this role that I think will fit you.’ I thought he was joking or just being kind. But he brought it up again on the next shoot. Then Varun Dhawan came for a shoot and congratulated me on being launched by Dharma. But I declined that role because I didn’t know if I’d be able to do it. I was taking myself too seriously.”
As they discussed it, the ‘Kar Gayi Chull’ singer revealed the next offer he received from Dharma Productions. At the time, Rajkummar Rao was in talks to lead the film. “I was trekking in Manali when I saw Karan sir’s missed call. He summoned me to Mumbai, and Shashank Khaitan was there too. They told me to audition with Raj, but the role was of a character who can’t have kids… The role that I finally took was of a rapper with erectile dysfunction in ‘Khandani Shafakhana’. I did it because I wanted to spread awareness, and it was a very good film.”
Subsequently, the role in ‘Lust Stories’ went to Vicky Kaushal opposite Kiara Advani. On the other hand, ‘Good Newwz’ was led by Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor, Diljit Dosanjh, and Kiara Advani. Meanwhile, Badshah made his acting debut with ‘Khandani Shafakhana’. Opposite the singer, Sonakshi Sinha played a sexologist who tries to create a discourse around the taboo subject of sex in Indian society. The film also featured Varun Sharma and Anu Kapoor.