Salman Khan had quite an elaborate star cast when he roped in Priyanka Chopra, Disha Patani and Tabu for Bharat. The project was touted as PeeCee's comeback venture in Bollywood and their fans were excited to see them shine on the big screen after such a long time. However, Priyanka then had her reservations as she was planning her wedding with Nick Jonas at the same time. She thought juggling between her personal and professional lives would be hectic since Bharat had quite a tedious schedule. It was only after sudden exit that makers were left in limbo and had to rope in another powerful name to replace Mrs Jonas. And who better than Katrina Kaif for the same? Priyanka Chopra Made 1000 Calls to Arpita Khan and Requested Ali Abbas Zafar for a Role in Salman Khan’s Bharat.

Soon after the exit of Priyanka, Salman announced Katrina as the leading lady and rest, as they say, is history. While the actress is on cloud nine to bag this big project, she has no qualms about being the second choice for it. In her recent conversation with DNA, when she was asked to react on this Bharat episode, she said, "l wanted to do the film with Priyanka. When she exited, he (Ali Abbas Zafar) said he would like to go ahead with me. And I’ve no qualms about it." Salman Khan is Still UNHAPPY With Priyanka Chopra's Exit From Bharat and His Latest Statement is Proof Of That!

Speaking if his great rapport with the director and Salman helped her bag the role, she said, "It’s not that I’m his best friend, so I should be there in every film that he makes. It’s his journey and vision as a director. I don’t mix that with our friendship."

As per initial reports in BollywoodLife, Katrina was always a part of Bharat with Disha and Priyanka. However, no official announcement was made and insiders believe Kat wasn't keen on going ahead with the role that was offered to her. But with Priyanka's exit, the lead eventually went to her and she had no reasons to deny this time.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 11, 2018 04:23 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).