Kabir Singh is the biggest hit of this year. A Hindi remake of a hit Telugu movie Arjun Reddy, this film has Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advani in the lead. But did you know the makers of the film were divided on who should play the titular character? Arjun Kapoor revealed during his interaction at the 10th Jagran Film Festival that while the producer had him in mind when they bought the rights, director Sandeep Reddy Vanga wanted Shahid Kapoor. Arjun Kapoor’s Advice After Working with Ashutosh Gowariker in Panipat: ‘Anybody Who Wants to Be an Actor or Director Must Meet Him’

Arjun said, "It did not reach that stage where I could choose or not. When the rights were being acquired by (producers) Ashwin (Varde) and Murad (Khetani), who made Mubarakan, they acquired keeping me in mind. Sandeep Vanga, the director had met Shahid and he had seen the film before and they decided to do the film together."

While Arjun lauded Shahid's performance in the film, he also added, "Sandeep is the director of the film and he had a clearer vision of the film and without him, the film wouldn't have been what it is now. Fundamentally, films chose actors and directors but in this case, the intent was right from our side and we couldn't combine it. The film needed Sandeep Vanga. There is a madness to that film, there is inherent energy. It is a simple story but there was madness to the treatment. He (Sandeep) had already committed and he wanted to stick to his words and I respect that. I did not want my producers sitting around with the rights of the film and not making it out of me being in an ego tussle with anybody."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 30, 2019 11:04 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).