Ankita Lokhande has established herself as one of the most sought-after actresses of her generation in Bollywood. She made her giant leap from television, where she rose to household prominence with shows like Pavitra Rishta. It was finally in 2019 when she made her debut in the silver screen with Kangana Ranaut’s film, Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi. Thereafter, she collaborated with a number of eminent filmmakers and starred in quite a few movies, including Baaghi 3, Torbaaz, The Last Coffee and much recently, Swatantrya Veer Savarkar.
In a recent interaction with India Today, filmmaker, Sandip Singh revealed an unheard anecdote about Ankita Lokhande’s career. For the unversed, the duo recently announced collaborating on an upcoming film, Amrapali. Sandip recalled the past when he used to work for Sanjay Leela Bhansali as the CEO of the production house and revealed how Ankita was the first one to audition for Deepika Padukone’s role in the film, Goliyon Ki Rasleela… Ram Leela. Sandip shared that while Ankita didn’t fail during the audition, nevertheless, SLB wanted an established star for the project. He shared:
“It is not like she did not crack the audition of ‘Ram Leela’. She did crack it. However, after Mr Bhansali had delivered ‘Black’, ‘Sawaariya’ and ‘Guzaarish’, he wanted a star. The budget for the film was too much at that time. I think in the audition itself, she did fabulous.”
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Well, agree or not, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is a massively successful filmmaker in Bollywood and he is credited to have delivered some larger than life magnum opus on the celluloid. Speaking about Ankita, much like any other actress, she too harbours a desire to work with SLB and spoke about feeling fortunate for at least auditioning for his films. In her words:
“I feel very fortunate that I could at least audition for such films. I look up to Sanjay Leela Bhansali, I will forever want to work with him. When you are in front of him, and he is looking at you, you know that at least you are reaching somewhere near your goal.”
This hasn’t been the first time that Ankita Lokhande discussed not cracking offers with Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Previously, in an interview with a leading daily, she recalled how the filmmaker warned her not to let go of his offer for Bajirao Mastani as she wished to prioritise her personal life at that time. Recalling the filmmaker’s words, she had said:
“I remember Sanjay sir called me and said, ‘Kar le ye Bajirao varna yaad rakh pachtayegi tu '. He was literally praising me and coming from Sanjay sir it is a very big thing. Then I was like, ‘Nahi sir, mujhe shaadi karni hai . I still remember that and he did not have anything to say, and I quit on it.”
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In one of her previous interviews, filmmaker, Sandip Singh revealed how Ankita Lokhande didn’t charge any fee for the film Swatantrya Veer Savarkar. He mentioned that at a time when he started off producing the film, he didn’t think that any actor would support him for the project. Nonetheless, it was Ankita who stepped forward and agreed on essaying the role of ‘Yamunabai’, only on the condition that she wouldn’t charge a penny for the same.
What do you think about Ankita Lokhande’s film offers? Let us know.
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