Irrfan & Priyanka Will Bring Alive the Sahir Ludhianvi Biopic

Irrfan Khan and Priyanka Chopra come together for Gustakhiyan, the SLB production based on Sahir Ludhianvi’s life.

Priyanka Chopra and Irrfan Khan in a scene from Saat Khoon Maaf.

Set aside all the rumours, hearsay and conjecture. It is finally Irrfan Khan and Priyanka Chopra, who will bring to life the legendary poet-lyricist Sahir Ludhianvi and his muse, the bohemian author Amrita Pritam.

Completely discarding recent claims that Irrfan is unable to give dates to the project, a source close to the Gustakhiyan unit says,

Irrfan Khan has been on board from the start. He was our first choice and he remains our only choice to play Sahir Ludhianvi.

A source close to <i>Gustakhiyan</i> unit

Priyanka Chopra too has been all but finalised for some time and is now on board. Apparently producer Sanjay Leela Bhansali had made up his mind to cast her during the making of Bajirao Mastani.

With her smouldering sensuality, outgoing personality and husky diction, Priyanka is the perfect fit for Amrita Pritam.

A source close to <i>Gustakhiyan</i> unit

Gustakhiyan will be directed by debutante Jasmeet Reen. The film will chronicle the tumultuous blow-hot-blow-cold relationship between the iconic poet Sahir Ludhianvi and author Amrita Pritam, an association that lasted for nearly forty years. It was rumoured that Bhansali was thinking of signing his Mastani Deepika Padukone for Amrita Pritam's role. But it was felt all along that Priyanka's personality suited Pritam’s character to pitch perfection. As for Irrfan, he was always the first choice for Sahir.

There haven been reports suggesting that Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who produces Gustakhiyan, is also directing the project. But sources close to SLB dismiss this as 'bunk'.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali is currently directing <i>Padmavati</i>. He hasn’t even thought of what he will direct next. <i>Gustakhiyan</i> was always Jasmeet Reen’s project.

A source close to <i>Gustakhiyan</i> unit

(The love of Lata Mangeshkar's voice and Hindi movies - in that order - has propelled Subhash K Jha to the pursuit of journalism for over 30 years.)