Pahlaj Nihalani : “Kangana Ranaut Has Fogotten How Much I’ve helped Her When She Was In Deep Trouble.”

Producer and former  chairperson  of  the censor board Pahlaj Nihalani is suddenly in the  new again, thanks to  the  ever-newsyKangana Ranaut who has  lashed  out atNihalani  saying, “Pahlaj Nihalani had offered me a film called I Love You Boss. They had aphotoshoot where they gave me a robe to wear, and no undergarments. So, I just had a satin robe for a show-girl pose, from which I had to stick my leg out, coming out of darkness. I was supposed to play a young girl lusting after her middle-aged boss. So it was a soft-porn sort of character. And I had this epiphany that I can’t do this. I felt like this is exactly what my parents were talking about. I actually went through the photo shoot, but then I disappeared. I changed my number,”

 Nihalani  has  a very different  story  to tell. “First  of all, I wasn’t even there when the  photo-shoot for  the  film happened. She had  gone  for the shoot with her then-secretaryRakesh Nath who also looked after MadhuriDixit.  So what she wore  for the photo-shoot and or didn’t  wear was not my  look-out.Secondly does Kangana remember how  desperately she needed this  role in my film I Love You Boss  which she is now calling porn, and how much she  requested me  to cast her?Kangana  had gone around the entire  film industry with  Aditya Pancholi  knocking on  every  producer’s door  for work. But it didn’t happen.No one  signed her.Only I  ventured to sign her ,although I was advised against it.”

Nihalani wonders how the  film has suddenly  come  back into Kangana’s consciousness.  “For  ten  years she  has acknowledged AnuragBasu as her mentor and  discoverer. She seemed  to have completely  forgotten  that long before Anurag Basu I cast  her in I Love You Boss.And  she seemed most happy about it. The story was  about  a young girl and her crush  for her boss. I approached AmitabhBachchanji for the  boss’ part. When he  declined the part I  approached Rishi Kapoor. He  loved  the  script.  But couldn’t do  the  film. I finally asked my dear friendShatrughan Sinha and he agreed.”

 This was when  Kanagana dropped the first hot brick   on the project.

 Recalls  Nihalani, “Kangana said she won’t  work with Shatruji. She told me ZarinaWahabji had advised  her not to. She didn’t take  Aditya Pancholi’s name  .She  took his wife’s name. I  was livid. Was  Kangana  in a  position to turn down  a film with  a legend like Shatrughan Sinha? That  was the end of  the project.”
She apparently broke her  contract  withNihalani.  “Kangana was  contract-bound  for  three  films with me. But when she asked  me if  she could do  Anurag’s film I  released her  of  the contract.  Does she  talk about this ever? Or does she  talk about the time when she  was in big trouble for giving  the wrongMumbai address on her passport when she had  to fly out  to shoot for  Ritesh Sidhwani’s  film? Misinformation on the passport is  a serious criminal information. I ran  from pillar to post to bail her  out of trouble .And this is  how she repays me? By accusing me  of exploiting her?  Actors like Kangana Ranautbring  a bad name  to all the  efforts bystrugglers who are given a chance by  producers  like us.With success the struggle  is forgotten and so are those who helped  you get where you are.”