B A Pass director Ajay Bahl says he opted out of directing Kartik Aaryan in the comic thriller Freddy as the dates clashed with his underproduction film that he’s directing for Taapsee Pannu (Blurr).
This sounds highly improbable, considering how little work Bahl has been getting since his first film B A Pass in 2012. Since then he has directed only one film. Also read: Ugly 2: Anurag Kashyap-Ajay Bahl Team Up For The Sequel; Latter Says ‘While Anurag Directed The First Ugly Film I Will Direct The Second’-EXCLUSIVE
Some time back in a conversation with me Bahl was raving about the opportunity to work on Freddy with Kartik Aaryan, “He is so talented and dedicated. And also one of the most successful actors today,” Bahl had raved. So what happened? Apparently Bahl couldn’t see eye to eye with the producers on the script.
This is not the first time that Bahl has been driven out of a project due to creative differences. In 2013, Ajay Bahl was out of the Bhatts’ Citylights (featuring Rajkummar Rao and Patrakekha) and replaced by Hansal Mehta.
Soon after Ajay Bahl announced a film starring Abhay Deol and Gitanjali Thapa that never got made. It was an adaptation of Kimitsi Takagi’s Japanese Novel The Informer featuring Deol and Thapa.
Director Ajay Bahl said he owed Geetanjali one. “After I opted out of the Bhatts project City Lights, Geetanjali also opted out. She didn’t have to do that. In fact, from what I know of the equations in the entertainment industry no one turns away from a project for the sake of showing solidarity. Geetanjali left the Bhatts project after I did. I owe her a role in the film that I am doing now.”
The Informer, like several other projects of Ajay Bahl, never got made. So, I guess he still owes Gitanjali Thapa a movie.
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