Paani, directed by Shekhar Kapur, was Sushant Singh Rajput’s top priority, but sadly, it was canceled.
One of Sushant Singh Rajput’s closest friends, Mukesh Chhabra, appeared with the actor in his debut film, Dil Bechara, before the latter’s untimely death in 2020. In a recent interview, Chhabra described how committed Sushant was to his profession, to the point where others in the business believed the actor was haughty when he turned down multiple offers just because he wanted to devote all of his time to Shekhar Kapur’s Paani.
Sushant Singh Rajput’s enthusiasm for Shekhar Kapur’s Paani was well known. However, the movie was put on hold indefinitely as Yash Raj Films pulled out of the production. For the uninitiated, Sushant passed away in 2020. Although his passing was deemed to be a suicide, The man was slain, according to his admirers.
Returning to Mukesh Chhabra’s admission, the casting director and filmmaker said that Sushant Singh Rajput’s decision to decline offers from other films in order to focus on Shekhar Kapur’s Paani was perceived as a sign of arrogance by some. He declined so many films because of Paani, Mukesh Chhabra revealed during the Art of Acting talk tour in the US. People believed that because of his newfound fame, he had grown conceited. However, he was truly thrilled and enthusiastic about the movie. Everyone wants to work with Shekhar Kapur, said Chhabra. He was announced for the movie while I was present. After hearing the news, he felt giddy as a child. The film, he said, “unfortunately, didn’t happen.”
In relation to Shekhar Kapur’s Paani, he mentioned in one of his earlier interviews how Sushant Singh Rajput broke down in tears when the movie was cancelled. Later, he added in a tweet that he would dedicate the movie to Sushant if it ever got made.
Kapur wrote in a tweet, “You have to walk each step in dedication, in humility, if you want to journey with the Gods or your creativity.
God willing, Paani will eventually be produced, he continued. I’ll dedicate it to Sushant if it does. However, it must be done so with partners who walk in humility rather than in arrogance.