Veteran Bollywood actress Raveena Tandon has revealed that she was originally approached for the lead role in Shah Rukh Khan’s 1993 film Darr, a part that eventually went to Juhi Chawla. Speaking in a recent interview, Tandon said legendary filmmaker Yash Chopra had offered her the role, but she turned it down because she was not comfortable with certain scenes in the film.
Tandon explained that during her early years in the film industry, she preferred to avoid roles that involved close physical proximity or emotional intimacy that she did not feel prepared for. She said that although Darr did not contain anything vulgar, it still had moments she felt she could not perform confidently at that time.
She also described herself as reserved during that phase of her career, which sometimes led to misunderstandings on film sets. According to her, she was not being arrogant but simply maintaining personal boundaries and comfort.
Raveena also shared that she had rejected another film earlier, Prem Qaidi, which later became the debut movie of Karisma Kapoor. She said her choices were based on her values and comfort rather than competition or pressure.
Darr went on to become a landmark movie in Bollywood and is remembered for Shah Rukh Khan’s powerful performance as an obsessive lover, alongside Sunny Deol and Juhi Chawla. The film significantly boosted Shah Rukh’s rise to superstardom and remains one of his most noted early roles.
