- Sudesh Berry was nearly cast opposite bigger stars in Darr before Shah Rukh Khan
- The cast of Darr changed multiple times during pre-production stages
- Concerns arose about Berry's character punching a more famous actor on screen
Shah Rukh Khan's performance as Rahul Mehra in Darr is still remembered as one of the turning points in his career. His menacing avatar, almost instantly, made him the next big thing in Hindi cinema and forged a long association with filmmaker Yash Chopra. Before Khan was cast, Sudesh Berry was almost finalised for the film.
Berry said that the cast had been changed multiple times during the pre-production stage, adding there was concern about a scene where his character was supposed to punch a bigger star.
Since the other role was always meant for a bigger star, it looked unusual to see a newcomer like him hitting such a well-known actor on screen.
On the Accompany Akki podcast, Sudesh Berry explained, “I did not reject the film. Sometimes things just happen. In Darr, the role opposite was always meant for a bigger star. First it was Rishi Kapoor. Then there were talks about Aamir Khan. At different stages, the combinations kept changing, like Rishi Kapoor with Sudesh Berry, Aamir Khan with Sudesh Berry, then Sunny Deol with Sudesh Berry and finally it became Sunny Deol and Shah Rukh Khan. These things keep changing during filmmaking.”
“Towards the end, there's a shot of my character punching the other person. Whoever played the other character, it appeared as if a bigger actor was being punched by Sudesh Berry. This is what I heard, I haven't seen the movie.”
According to Berry, Yash Chopra was a passionate filmmaker who liked to make films in his own way. Even after most things were planned, the final cast was still changing. Berry said he was new to the industry at the time and many decisions were beyond his control.
He also shared that Yash Chopra even suggested director Naresh Malhotra to make the film with Saif Ali Khan and Akshay Kumar.
Berry believed actors such as Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan and others became successful because of their hard work and luck. He said everyone, including himself, worked hard but some got the right opportunities at the right time.
He also said the same was true for stars like Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar.
Despite not getting a chance to work opposite Sunny Deol in Darr, Berry later worked with the actor in Border.