Aneez Bazmee On ‘Pressure To Cast’ Tabu In Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3: ‘Didn’t Want To Destroy…’ | Exclusive – News18

Last Updated:October 25, 2024, 03:57 IST

Anees Bazmee reveals why he chose Madhuri Dixit over Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2’s Tabu to play another rendition of Manjulika in threequel.

The cast of Bhool Bhulaiyaa has undergone a major shift over the years. Akshay Kumar and Vidya Balan, who headlined the first installment of the horror-comedy franchise, passed the baton to Kartik Aaryan and Tabu in the sequel. Now, in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, Kartik and Vidya, who returns to embody Manjulika after 17 years, will be joined by Madhuri Dixit Nene, playing the new Manjulika.

But was there ever a plan to pit Vidya against Tabu, who also portrayed Manjulika in the sequel, in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3? In an exclusive chat with News18 Showsha, Anees Bazmee spills the beans on not casting Tabu and admits that many of his peers tried to convince him to include her in his upcoming release. “At parties, a lot of people told me it’s important and even necessary for her to be part of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3. The pressure to cast her was definitely in my head,” he reveals.

According to the director, one scene in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 served as a wake-up call for him, leading to his decision not to use her character for marketing appeal. “There’s a scene in the sequel where she takes her identical twin into the room and tells her, ‘Do behenon ki beech ki baat kabhi khatam nahi hoti.’ We don’t know what happens inside. It’s all left to the imagination,” he explains.

The Welcome and No Entry director adds, “Sometimes, the unspoken things, the things not shown, leave a deeper impression. She was brilliant in that scene, and it wouldn’t be wrong to say her character has transcended to a different level now. I didn’t want to destroy the impact she created. Whenever people think of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, they’ll remember the superb job Tabu ji did in it.”

While it’s clear that Tabu’s presence in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 would have added extra star power, Anees felt it “wouldn’t have been fair to her character.” “Casting her in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 would’ve definitely earned us praise, and I know she would have been amazing. Had she not been my friend, I might have even pushed her to do it. But I respect her a lot, so I decided to go with someone else. It took us a long time to find the perfect fit for Manjulika after Vidya and Tabu ji,” he remarks.

Speaking about his relationship with Tabu, Anees says, “Tabu ji is a dear friend. I’m very fond of her. She’s a wonderful person and did a fabulous job in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. I couldn’t stop watching, thinking, ‘What is she doing?!’ Only an actor of Tabu ji’s level and caliber could do what she did in the film. She was so good! A big part of the success of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 can be attributed to her.”