Mahabharata Actor Puneet Issar Reveals BR Chopra Wanted Him To Play THIS Character

With the country in lockdown and current TV show on hold, old shows are making a comeback to entertain the audience. With the revival of the show, actors from the popular series are sharing their experiences and thoughts about the show. While Mahabharata actor Firoz Khan recently shared why he changed his name to Arjun, co-star Puneet Issar has also shared some interesting trivia from his time on the show. Moreover, Nitish Bharadwaj also shared the reason he refused to play Krishna in the show at first.

Talking to IndiaToday.in, Puneet Issar shared that BR Chopra had offered him a different role in Mahabharata. However, the actor was intent on playing Duryodhana.

“When I went to BR Chopra for the audition, after looking at my personality, he said ‘You are taken as Bheem’. I said ‘No sir, I have read the Mahabharat and I would like to audition for only Duryodhana’s character. He said, ‘Kamaal hai. Hum tumhe hero bana rahe hai aur tum villain banna chaah rahe ho.’ I told him that I know what is the importance of Duryodhana’s character in Mahabharat. I had read this book called Jayadrath Vadh. It is maha-kavya by Maithli Sharan Gupt. It’s in poetry form and I knew it by heart. I recited Jayadrath Vadh and was immediately chosen to play Duryodhan. That’s how I got the role.”

Meanwhile, Gufi Paintal, who also plays the role of Shakuni, auditioned around 5000 artists for the show. In addition, he also shared how he happened to cast Puneet Issar and Nitish Bharadwaj for the role of Duryodhan and Krishna. The actor said, “Puneet had accidentally punched Amitabh Bachchan in Coolie (1983), and was out of work. Nitish was spotted in an ad made by the Chopras.”

ALSO READ: Nitish Bharadwaj Refused To Play Krishna In Mahabharata