Renowned Bollywood director and choreographer Farah Khan is known for her straightforward nature and unfiltered opinions. Whether it’s making casting choices for her films or selecting performers for iconic dance sequences, she has always been candid about her decisions. Recently, Farah revealed the reason behind rejecting Shilpa Shirodkar for the legendary song Chhaiya Chhaiya from the film Dil Se.
Recently, Farah Khan invited Bigg Boss 18 winner Karan Veer Mehra to her vlog, where he prepared his signature egg dish, which gained popularity during his time on the controversial reality show. While chatting with Karan Veer Mehra on her YouTube channel, Farah revealed why she chose not to cast Shilpa for the legendary song Chhaiya Chhaiya. She shared, "I came to Shilpa to ask her for ‘Chhaiya Chhaiya’. But something must have happened to her because, at that time, she was at least 100 Kgs. So I thought ‘How will she get on the train?’ And if she gets on, where will Shah Rukh stand?”
Upon its release, Chhaiya Chhaiya became a phenomenal success. The song, which featured dancers performing atop a moving train, was eventually offered to Malaika Arora after Raveena Tandon and Shilpa Shetty reportedly declined it for unknown reasons. Malaika’s mesmerizing performance turned into one of Bollywood’s most iconic musical moments, solidifying Chhaiya Chhaiya as a timeless classic.
In one of the episodes of Bigg Boss 18, during a chat with fellow contestants Chum Darang and Karanveer Mehra, Shilpa had also talked about Farah Khan initially approaching her for a song but later decided against casting her, labeling her as "too fat" for the role.
"Farah approached me for 'Chaiyya Chaiyya,'" Shilpa shared, explaining that Farah initially requested her to lose weight for the song, which starred Shah Rukh Khan. However, Shilpa revealed that just 10 days later, Farah decided to drop her from the project.