Not Hrithik Roshan, THIS Actor Was The First Choice For Jodhaa Akbar

Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan starrer Jodhaa Akbar is considered one of the cult classic films and was a commercial success. The audience loved the chemistry of Hrithik and Aishwarya and lauded them for their acting prowess. However, do you know that Hrithik was not the first choice of Ashutosh Gowariker?

Jodhaa Akbar was offered to THIS star kid

According to a report in Friday Release, the filmmaker first approached Ranbir Kapoor for the role of Emperor Akbar. Earlier, during the promotion of Bombay Velvet, Ranbir confessed that he turned down the period drama and on knowing this, his father Rishi Kapoor was furious. Learning a lesson, the actor added that ever since then he has never left a movie early.

Not just Ranbir, Ashutosh also opened up about how he cast Hrithik. He didn't reveal approaching the Animal actor, but shared that though the choice of Aishwarya for Jodhaa was instant, he took some time before signing Hrithik for Akbar. He said, "Ronnie Screwvala and I had a few deliberations before we finalised the lead star. We wanted an actor who would justify the role and at the same time who had a good box-office appeal. Finally, our choice fell on Hrithik and as it turned out, our choice could not have been better."

More about Jodhaa Akbar

The film collected a gross revenue of ₹77.85 crore in India, while Box Office India declared it a hit at the domestic box office. Its domestic net income was ₹56.04 crore, becoming the fourth-highest Hindi film of 2008. Overseas, it grossed ₹ 49.92 crore and was declared a blockbuster at the overseas box office. The film concluded its box office run with a worldwide lifetime gross of ₹112 crore (equivalent to ₹312 crore or US$39 million in 2023), equivalent to US$28.37 million at the time.