It seems like Mahesh Manjrekar has waited enough. The long-pending Hindi version of Marathi film Shikshanachya Aaicha Gho was to star Salman Khan as an ambitious and academically-obsessed father of a boy who wants loves playing cricket.
About a year ago when Manjrekar offered Khan the role, he seemed eager to "break the mould" and do the unexpected in the shoes of a working class father of teenage kids.
That was before Dabangg. Now, ordinary characters are out of Khan’s career. Life-like is not acceptable. Larger-than-life is the need of the hour.
The Hindi adaptation of Shikshanachya Aacha Gho no longer enthuses him. Apparently, Manjrekar has moved on too. Bengali superstar Presanjeet is set to play the lead in the Bengali adaptation of the Marathi film, and he might just play the lead in the Hindi version too.
The other option is National Award-winning Telugu actor Prakash Raj, who played a villain opposite Salman Khan in Wanted.
Manjrekar is unwilling to admit he has given up on Khan. "Salman and I discussed the film while shooting for Anees Bazmi’s Ready. He was very excited. But he still hasn’t found the time to see the Marathi original. I’ll speak to him when we resume shooting for Ready, " he said.
In the meanwhile, Manjrekar admits that Prakash Raj is doing two versions of the film. "Prakash liked the Marathi film, and agreed to do both, Tamil and Telugu versions. He will also direct both versions. "
Manjrekar will play a supporting character (a Muslim money lender) in the Tamil and Telugu versions.
As for the much-awaited Hindi adaptation, it seems to have slipped out of Salman Khan’s hands.
