Anil Kapoor Considered Madhuri Dixit’s Casting In Beta ‘Minus’ For THIS Reason, Deets Inside

Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit starrer Beta marked Indra Kumar’s reputation as a leading Bollywood director. However, the movie was delayed for a year due to its casting. While Anil Kapoor was always the first choice, the makers had approached Sridevi before Madhuri Dixit. Adi Irani recently revealed that Anil Kapoor was initially skeptical about Madhuri’s casting, believing it to be a ‘minus’ for the film.

When Anil Kapoor was sceptical to work with Madhuri Dixit in Beta

In a podcast on Filmymantra Media, Adi revealed that Dil happened only because Indra Kumar couldn’t get Anil Kapoor’s dates for a year. Indra had already produced two films with Anil — Mohabbat(1985) and Kasam (1988). When Indra wanted to turn director with his third film, Beta, Anil, being a friend, couldn’t say no to him. On his elder brother and producer Boney Kapoor’s insistence, Anil agreed to do Beta, but didn’t have dates for the film for a year. “Then Anil Kapoor told Indra Kumar, ‘You do one thing. Make a small-budget film in the meantime. You’ll also get an experience being a director too.’ So he started Dil, in which he signed Aamir Khan and Madhuri Dixit. He was thinking, ‘Let me make a small film with these too. Let’s see if it works,‘” said Adi Irani.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by anilskapoor (@anilskapoor)

“Six-seven films of his (Aamir) flopped in a row after Aamir Khan’s first film. He was considered a flop hero. The producers used to say, ‘Don’t take him. Don’t know whether his films would work or not.’ That was the case for Madhuri Dixit as well. She had signed a lot of big films, but one-two didn’t work and the others were not getting completed,” the actor recalled. Dil went on to become a huge hit.

Interestingly, Sridevi was initially approached as the leading lady of Beta. “Sridevi didn’t work with new directors. She was approached for Beta through Anil Kapoor. But she said no to him. Indu ji was already doing Dil with Madhuri, so he signed her for Beta too. So that was another minus point. Why? Because Dil hadn’t released by then. And Madhuri was already signed for Beta. So Anil said, ‘Sridevi said no, so instead of signing a big heroine, you’re signing Madhuri Dixit. Everything is a minus in your film.’ But all the minuses turned out to be pluses for Beta,” said Adi Irani.

Adi Irani’s sister Aruna Irani played Anil’s mother in Beta.

Also Read: Gene Hackman, Wife & Dog Found Dead At New Mexico Home; Anil Kapoor Expresses SHOCK Over His Tragic Demise

Aakruti Bagla

With over 4 years of experience, Aakruti Bagla is a Bollywood and Television enthusiast working as a content writer and anchor in Bollywood Bubble. Whether reporting on red carpet moments or diving into long-form features, she aims to tell stories that resonate with readers and reveal the people behind the personas.