Aamir Khan recently revealed that Rajkumar Santoshi had approached him before Ajay Devgn to play freedom fighter Bhagat Singh on screen.

Aamir Khan file photo | Image:X

Aamir Khan is a celebrated actor who has been a part of several critically acclaimed films like 3 Idiots, and Rang De Basanti among others. Interestingly, the actor once turned down a role in his career, which was bagged by another star, leading him to win the National Award for Best Actor. But. what was that film? Let’s find out.

Aamir Khan recalls turning down The Legend of Bhagat Singh

During a comedy show, Aamir Khan revealed that Rajkumar Santoshi had approached him before Ajay Devgn to play freedom fighter Bhagat Singh on screen. However, he refused to go ahead with the project. Revealing the reason behind turning down the film, Aamir said that he wouldn’t have looked good playing Bhagat Singh as he had turned 40 at the time while he was asked to play a 22-23 year old person.

Aamir Khan file photo | Image: Wikipedia

He said, “He was a unique human being. What he did at the age of 22-23, we can’t even think about it. His courage. He was fearless. That’s a very rare quality. Its beauty was that you see a young 23-year-old on the witness stand, whose mustache has not sprouted, making such big statements. If I stood there, I was already turning 40 at the time, it wouldn’t have looked good. That quality of a young guy saying such things won’t come to me. I told Raj (Rajkumar Santoshi) to cast some young boy in his early twenties.”

Ajay Devgn as Bhagat Singh | Image: Ajay Devgn/XDid Rajkumar Santoshi listen to Aamir Khan’s advice?

It seems like Rajkumar Santoshi did not go ahead with Aamir Khan’s idea of casting a young actor. Instead, he went ahead and offered the role to Ajay Devgn, who was 33 years old at the time. Nevertheless, Ajay won a National Film Award for Best Actor for his acting prowess in The Legend of Bhagat Singh when it released in 2002. The movie also won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.