When Prosenjit Chatterjee turned down Maine Pyar Kiya and Saajan, didn’t want to risk career in Bengali cinema

With the upcoming period drama Jubilee, Prosenjit Chatterjee makes his Hindi OTT debut as studio head Srikant Roy. The actor is one of the longtime stars of Bengali cinema and has done a few projects in Bollywood. Not many are aware that he had turned down Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) and Saajan (1991). Both of the films were pivotal in the careers of Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt who ended up playing those parts. However, Prosenjit revealed that he didn’t want to take a risk with his career in Bengali films, especially after the massive success of Amar Sanghi. (Also read: Jubilee trailer: Fame, ambition and desire collide in early years of Bollywood in Vikramditya Motwane’s drama series)

Prosenjit is the son of veteran actor Biswajit Chatterjee who has worked in both Hindi and Bengali films. However, Prosenjit, who has worked on a handful of Bollywood projects, chose to focus his career in West Bengal.

In a 2012 interview with The New York Times, Prosenjit spoke about why he didn’t follow his father in Bollywood. He had said, “Frankly, I did not want to jeopardize my Bengali film career at that time. I tried my hand in three Hindi films but those were not really very well thought-out or conscious decisions. They flopped. Back home [in Kolkata], after “Amar Sangi” (1987) became a phenomenon and established me as a hero, I found a lot to do here. Risking all those to pursue a career in Mumbai may not have been wise. So, I refused offers, which included films such as “Maine Pyar Kiya” [lead that was later played by Salman Khan] and “Saajan” [Sanjay Dutt’s role]. Both films went on to become super-hits!”

Recently, during promotions for Jubilee, the actor was reluctant to bring up his decision to turn down Maine Pyar Kiya which was Salman’s breakthrough role. He began by telling Bollywood Bubble, “Leave it. Forget it. Let’s talk about Jubilee.” When further pressed by his Jubilee castmates, Prosenjit said he was looking for a different direction in his career. He added, “Honestly speaking, I told you… My last Hindi film was Shanghai. And, as you know, from the last 10 to 12 years, I’m doing not those mainstream cinema. I have shifted to and I worked with all new educators.”

Jubilee also stars Aparshakti Khurana, Aditi Rao Hydari, Wamiqa Gabbi, Ram Kapoor and Sidhant Gupta. The series has been co-created by Vikramaditya Motwane and Soumik Sen. The first five episodes will be shown on April 7, while the last five will stream from April 14.