‘Don’t want to hurt sentiments of Sushant fans’ – Director drops idea of signing Rhea for his next movie

It has been more than two months since star Bollywood actor passed away but nobody seems to have moved on. Sushant’s fans are still paying him rich tributes on social media with some throwback pictures and heart-melting video clips. But the actor’s ardent fans are still speculating something fishy in his death. The case is currently being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

Meanwhile, in his seven-page FIR, Sushant’s father accused Rhea of ‘cheating’, ‘criminal breach of trust’, ‘wrongful restraint’ besides ‘abetment of suicide’. However, Rhea Chakraborty has reportedly hired well-known and leading celebrity criminal lawyer Mr Satish Maneshinde to battle her case at the court of law.

‘Don’t want to hurt sentiments of Sushant fans’ - Director drops idea of signing Rhea for his next movie
Credits: Google

Currently regarded as one of India’s ‘expensive’ lawyers, Satish Maneshinde has earlier fought high-profile cases and showcased his sheer abilities in the law and justice system.

Meanwhile, independent filmmaker Lom Harsh was considering Rhea Chakraborty in his forthcoming film, but not anymore. Casting the rumoured girlfriend of late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput considering the circumstances could hurt the sentiment of his fans, according to the filmmaker. This significant decision by the filmmaker comes at a time when a legal battle is still on over the death of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

“This is my second feature film and we were planning to cast Rhea Chakraborty. The film was being planned since 2018. We were about to start our shoot this year but the pandemic happened, so it got delayed. Rhea was among those actresses who were considered for the female lead of the yet-untitled film.

We are completely done with pre-production work and planning to start shooting soon. She was being considered by the producers and the casting team. But after Sushant’s death and the current situation, we have decided not to cast her anymore in this film,” Lom Harsh told news agency IANS.

He also explained his decision: “We are a country full of people with sentiments and religious values. Today the sentiments are with Sushant Singh Rajput. So I think we should respect the audience’s verdict. We don’t want to hurt anybody’s sentiment, especially his fans. That’s why we have decided not to cast her.”

Lom Harsh also disclosed that the character Rhea was being considered for in his film. “The film deals with the medical profession and we were planning to cast Rhea as a doctor, who is also the female protagonist of the film,” he said.

When asked about whether the filmmaker personally approached Rhea for the role or speak to her about the same, he replied: “We have dedicated casting directors in our company. We send them a list of actors we were looking forward to cast. Rhea was in the probable list of the selected candidates, but we dropped the idea after all this happened. I personally never spoke to her for the role or for any discussion regarding the film.”