Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan were Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s first choice for Padmavati.

Love blossomed between Salman Khan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan when they worked together for the first time in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999). The filmmaker wanted to recreate their onscreen magic in Bajirao Mastani, but the two actors had a bitter break-up, and the project never took off. Bhansali eventually made the film in 2015 with Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone.

If a report in Open magazine is to be believed, Salman and Aishwarya were the director’s first choice for Padmavati, as well. Apparently, he approached them a few years ago and almost succeeded too. The only catch was, Aishwarya agreed to do the film only on one condition – if Salman played the role of the antagonist Alauddin Khilji, who sets out to capture Rani Padmini, but has no scenes with her.

However, Salman refused the offer. Apparently, the actor was keen on working with Aishwarya, but only if it was a love story that would recreate their Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam chemistry that fans fell in love with. He was unwilling to settle for a film where he wouldn’t share any screen space with her.

source: indiatoday.intoday.in