Badshah shared that Karan Johar had approached him to play the lead role in his short film in the Netflix anthology, Lust Stories.
Renowned rapper Badshah made his acting debut with Sonakshi Sinha-starrer Khandaani Shafakhana in 2019. But do you know before that, he was approached by Karan Johar to star in his segment in the Netflix anthology film, Lust Stories?
However, he turned down the offer because he was unsure if he could play someone who can’t sexually satisfy his wife, and was taking himself ‘too seriously’ at that stage. Eventually, the role went to Vicky Kaushal.
In an interview with Lallantop, while speaking about how Karan Johar offered him to be a part of Lust Stories, Badshah shared, “I was offered Vicky Kaushal’s role in Lust Stories. I thought Karan sir was joking. He said, ‘There’s a role of a guy who can’t satisfy his wife’. And I was like, ‘Yeh kya baat hui sir? Main aisa lagta hoon kya (Do I look like the kind of guy who can’t satisfy his partner)?’”
On being asked if he actually said those words to Karan, the rapper replied in affirmative, and recalled, “We were judging a show called Dil Hai Hindustani, and he was sitting right next to me. He said, ‘There’s this role that I think will fit you.’ I thought he was joking, or just being kind. But he brought it up again on the next shoot. Then Varun Dhawan came for a shoot and congratulated me on being launched by Dharma. But I declined that role, because I didn’t know if I would be able to do it. I was taking myself too seriously.”
Further, Badshah also revealed that he was approached for Diljit Dosanjh’s role in Good Newwz, but at the time when Rajkummar Rao was attached to the film. He recalled how he was trekking in Manali when he saw Karan Johar’s missed call, asking him to audition with Raj in the presence of the film’s director Shashank Khaitan.
After turning down that role too, Badshah finally forayed into acting with Khandaani Shafakhana. The rapper said that he took up that film because he wanted to spread awareness, and it was a very good film.
Besides Khandaani Shafakhana, Badshah also made cameo appearances in Jazbaa, Veere Di Wedding, Bala, Good Newwz, Ek Villain Returns and Crew.