‘Shah Rukh Khan’s back injury delayed Munna Bhai MBBS by 10 months, Sanjay Dutt was meant to do the role’: actor Khurshed Lawyer

‘Shah Rukh Khan’s back injury delayed Munna Bhai MBBS by 10 months, Sanjay Dutt was meant to do the role’: actor Khurshed Lawyer

Rajkumar Hirani’s Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. recently completed 20 years and the film was widely praised for its screenplay, performances, and heartwarming moments. The cast, including Sanjay Dutt, Arshad Warsi, Boman Irani and Kurush Deboo among others, was released in 2003. Remember Swami, Sanjay Dutt’s roommate? Actor Khurshed Lawyer played that role and did a fantastic job, even though the character didn’t have much screen time. Khurshed shared that Shah Rukh Khan, who was supposed to play Murli Prasad Sharma, got a back injury, leading to a delay in the movie.

In an interview with Bollywood Hungama,  Khurshed said that after going through the audition process, he was shortlisted for the role of Swami. However, he said, “Munna Bhai MBBS went on floors. It got delayed for nearly 10 months due to Shah Rukh Khan’s back injury.”

When asked if he ever met Shah Rukh, the actor said, “No, as he never shot for the film. Eventually, things moved with Sanjay Dutt. In my personal opinion, Munna Bhai wouldn’t have been Munna Bhai without Sanjay Dutt and Dunki wouldn’t have been Dunki without Shah Rukh Khan. They both were meant to do their respective characters. It was God’s will, I guess.”

Khurshed was also a part of Shah Rukh’s recent film Dunki. The latest film was also helmed by Hirani and when asked if he met Shah Rukh this time, the actor said, “No, as it was a very tight schedule. There was no time to interact and also, it was a very professional setup.”

Shah Rukh had previously opened up about why he couldn’t do the film. According to a report by News18, SRK said, “Munna Bhai, I could not do it because I was injured at that time. I had undergone a spinal operation. I was not sure when I’ll be able to join. Raju was making his first film. I was shooting for Devdas when I had signed Munna Bhai MBBS. When I got injured, Raju dialed me from London and asked, ‘When will you do it?’ With due respect, Raju was not a big director. He was making a small film. Waiting for a star was difficult for him.”

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