After the debacle of Thugs of Hindostan (2018) on Diwali last year, Aamir Khan is currently preparing for his next film, Lal Singh Chaddha. Mr Perfectionist announced the project on his 54th birthday in March. Written by actor-writer Atul Kulkarni, Lal Singh Chaddha is an official remake of Hollywood biggie Forrest Gump (1994), starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson and Sally Field in lead roles.
Will you be surprised if somebody tells you that before Aamir Khan, superstar Shah Rukh Khan was supposed to star in the remake of Forrest Gump? Yes, you heard that absolutely right! SRK was set to headline a different remake of Forrest Gump more than two decades ago.
Reportedly, late filmmaker Kundan Shah had roped in evergreen Anil Kapoor for the remake after seeing his performance in the 1989 film Eeshwar. However, the director was not happy with the effort that Kapoor was putting into his performance, and replaced him with Shah Rukh Khan whom he had earlier directed in Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa (1994). But the film was shelved as Shah Rukh hit stardom after the massive success of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995).
After 10 years, Atul Kulkarni started writing a new remake of Forrest Gump. He then showed the script to his Rang De Basanti (2006) co-star Aamir Khan. “Atul pitched the script to Aamir and he liked it after a good ten years. Atul got the official rights from the original producers Wendy Finerman Productions, only when they were sure that Aamir was playing the lead in the film. He is further developing the film and making it more contemporary,” informs a source.
To be directed by Advait Chandan, Lal Singh Chaddha is set to begin production in September or October. Buzz has it that Kareena Kapoor Khan may come on-board to play the female lead opposite Aamir Khan. The movie is slated to release on Christmas 2020.
