‘Laal Singh Chaddha’ remains a film very close to Aamir Khan‘s heart despite its box office performance. In several interviews, the actor has opened up about the failure of the Bollywood remake of Tom Hank’s superhit film ‘Forrest Gump’. The actor has now opened up about initially wanting his son Junaid Khan to play the lead role in ‘Laal Singh Chaddha’. He admitted that Junaid’s test performance was so good that it stayed with him and affected his own acting during the shoot.
Aamir shared the emotional journey behind the casting decision and how deeply Junaid’s version impacted him.
Aamir Khan’s initial plan for Junaid Khan
When Junaid returned from acting training in Los Angeles, Aamir wanted to see his progress. He asked director Advait Chandan to shoot 7-8 scenes of Laal Singh Chaddha with Junaid.“I loved the script of Forrest Gump, we were very excited about it. At that time, Junaid had just completed his acting course in LA.
He came back quite experienced and I thought, let me see what he has learned,” Aamir told Hotstar.
Junaid Khan’s impressive test footage
Junaid shot about 20 minutes of film, including two-three difficult scenes. Aamir was shocked by how good his son was. He said, “When I saw it for the first time, I was shocked, Junaid was so good.”He even asked his wife Kiran if it was just father’s love. Kiran assured him that Junaid was genuinely good. Aamir then showed the footage to family and industry people, and almost everyone suggested Junaid should play Laal.
How Junaid Khan’s performance affected Aamir Khan
Aamir admitted that seeing Junaid’s version created a problem for him as an actor. He said, “To be quite honest, as an actor, once I saw him doing it, I found Laal. So then I was like, if he is Laal, how am I to play Laal?”Even after taking the role himself, Aamir kept referring to Junaid’s performance. He explained, “And the honest truth is, when I finally did the film, I used to keep referring to Junaid, how he would have done it, and I think that also somehow disturbed my performance as I had seen his performance.
If I had not seen it, it would not have mattered with me.”
Studio concerns and final decision
Despite being convinced about Junaid, the studio head in LA expressed concerns. Aamir said the studio wanted him to remain the lead as per the signed deal. He added, “Ultimately, for various reasons, we didn’t go with Junaid. One of the main reasons was because the head of the studio in LA, Jim, was a little unsure. I think he might have felt I am trying to push my son.”
Aamir Khan on wanting to cast his son
Aamir revealed that as a father he wanted to cast Junaid on merit. He said, “I saw the magic. As a father, on merit I wanted to cast him. On merit, I was not casting myself but him.”On the work front, Aamir Khan was last seen in ‘Sitaare Zameen Par’.
Watch
Aamir Khan’s Sisters Shine at Movie Screening
