Sharmila Tagore Battled cancer, Declined Key Role in ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’

Mumbai: Filmmaker Karan Johar approached veteran actor Sharmila Tagore to play a key role in his movie ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’, but she couldn’t do it as she was battling cancer at that time.

She revealed this when she appeared along with her son, actor Saif Ali Khan in the latest episode of Johar’s chat show ‘Koffee with Karan’.

Karan Johar revealed that she wanted Sharmila Tagore to play the role of Alia Bhatt’s grandmother in the movie. He said, “I had offered Sharmila ji the part played by Shabana (Azmi) ji in ‘Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani’. She was my very first choice. Due to health reasons at that time, she couldn’t say yes. but it is a regret I have. ”

Speaking about the time when Karan Johar’s offer came, the 79 year old actor said, “This is at the height of Covid. They hadn’t really grappled with Covid at that time. They didn’t know about the vaccine, we were not vaccinated. You know, (it was) after my cancer. So, they didn’t want me to take that risk.”

She did not reveal more about her disease.