August 5 is Genelia Deshmukh’s birthday and it’s the perfect time to recall an interesting fact about her career-defining film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. It’s been over 16 years since the film released, but it’s still fresh in the minds of the audience. But did you know that Genelia had a tough competition to get the female lead role?
Speaking to Hindustan Times, Genelia had once revealed that another girl was chosen for the iconic role of Aditi, who was cast opposite Imran Khan as Jai Singh Rathore. “It was really cool because we were going to shoot the final screen test to see how it looks. I remember Imran telling me that he was more comfortable with the other girl than me,” Mrs Deshmukh said.
The 37-year-old actor revealed that things changed when Imran saw the look test with her and felt Genelia was the right one. Genelia said, “It was like we were best friends forever.” Thank God that today we can see lovers like Genelia and Imran on screen.
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Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na was released in 2008 and became a cult romantic comedy classic in no time. Written and directed by Abbas Tyrewala, this coming-of-age drama was a perfect blend of friendship, heartbreak, college life and romance. The film changed the fortunes of the entire cast and crew, including Genelia.
Deshmukh, who entered the industry as Genelia D’Souza after J.T.Y.J.N., has starred in several successful films in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil languages. Talking about her personal life, Genelia married co-star Riteish Deshmukh on February 3, 2012, in a Hindu wedding ceremony as per Marathi wedding traditions. The next day, the couple also had a Christian wedding in a church.
Let us tell you that both Genelia and Ritesh made their debut together in K. Vijaya Bhaskar’s 2003 romantic drama Tujhe Meri Kasam. The couple welcomed their first child, a son named Riaan, on November 25, 2014. Their second son Rahyl was born on June 1, 2016. The couple was last seen together in 2022’s Veda, which was a commercial and critical success.
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