The Ranveer-Shahid Rivalry Out In the Open

They’ve been warily examining each other’s territory  all through the making Padmaavat. And now , the Ranveer Singh-Shahid Kapoor war is out in the open…at least as open as can be.

Recently both the actors broke  a very old protocol followed by co-stars who share the same  screen space.

They spoke about doing each other’s roles.

It was Ranveer Singh who set the ball rolling by saying he would have done Shahid’s Kaminay better than Shahid. Not to be left behind ,Shahid responded by saying he would  have played Ranveer’s Khilji in Padmaavat  “differently”.

Which was a subtle of saying  it could be done better.

A source very close to Padmaavat is not amused  by Shahid’s comment. “Of course Shahid would have played it differently.Every actor brings his own skills and  mannerisms  into every character. That  is why you can’t compare Dilip Kumar’s Devdas with Shah Rukh Khan’s Devdas. But why talk about a co-actor’s role? Did Amitabh Bcahchan speak about how he would’ve played Rajesh Khanna’s role in Namak Haraam ? Did Raakhee comment on what she would’ve done with Sharmila Tagore’s role in Daag? Even when two actors are  fierce  rivals it’s an unwritten rule that two actors don’t discuss one another’s roles in the same film.”

 Another source says Shahid was hounded by insecurities all through the making of Padmaavat.  “He had reservations  about Ranveer playing the author-backed role. Director Sanjay Bhansali convinced  him. But the twinge  of  doubt remained throughout the making of  the film, and Shahid would anxiously look over his shoulder at Ranveer’s role,” says the source.

Insecurity is a sturdy incentive to excel.And that’s what Shahid has proved with his  performance in Padmaavat. So why spoil it by talking about the other role?