Salman Khan's father, Salim Khan, has dismissed reports that claimed the actor-producer is upset with Priyanka Chopra for walking out of his home production Bharat at the last minute. It was also said that the actor has vowed not to work with Chopra again.
Salim clarified that Chopra didn't walk out of the film at the eleventh hour.
In an interview with Spotboye.com, he said, “Nope, it's not the nth hour. And I repeat, such things happen — sometimes they happen for date issues, or the role, or even the money aspect. Aur kabhi aadmi ki kuch apni majbooriyan hoti hai [sometimes people have their own contraints].
“It's okay whatever happened. Priyanka is not doing Bharat, let her be. Such things happen in our industry. Has it happened for the first time that someone has left a film?"
Stating that no one is upset with Chopra, he added, “I haven't yet got into the details of why Priyanka left Bharat, but we shall soon cast someone else. We are not upset with Priyanka. Salman Khan is also not upset.”
Interestingly, Nikhil Namit, CEO of Reel Life Productions, one of the producers of Bharat, had earlier called Chopra's move to quit Bharat a "little unprofessional". “Priyanka told us she had to exit due to her engagement, two days ago. It was a little unprofessional of her to do it so suddenly,” he had said.
It was the film's director, Ali Abbas Zafar, who first announced Chopra's exit from the project. In a Twitter post, he also said the actress quit the film for "very very special" reason. Thus, hinting at Chopra's engagement with American pop-singer Nick Jonas.
Soon, speculations on the reasons of Chopra's decision to leave Bharat began making rounds in the media. While some claimed that Chopra was not happy as her role in the film was cut short, some others said that the schedule of the film was extended and it was not possible for the actress to commit extra dates.
Meanwhile, there have been unconfirmed reports that Katrina Kaif will replace Chopra.