If original casting choice for ‘Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai’ would have remained intact then Ayesha Takia would have played the central protagonist in this Milap Zaveri directed film and Jacqueline Fernandez a.k.a. would have been the second lead. However, as luck would have it, Jackie ended up finding herself playing the main lead while Sonal Sehgal was roped in for the second lead.

What really happened?

“Nothing scandalous actually”, laughs Jackie who is happy with her decision of opting out when offered the second lead role to begin with, “I had originally auditioned for the character of Natasha (which is now being played by Sonal). I was keen to be a part of the film since I had loved the script. Still, I wasn’t sure though if I would be comfortable playing a second lead.”

Her confusion was justified since at that time she was also in the middle of shooting for ‘Aladin’ where she was the sole heroine.

“I explained my predicament to Milap and he was quite understanding. He wanted me to take a decision which was best for my career. However, he was unable to offer me the main lead since Ayesha (Takia) was already in. I actually decided to move out and it was a mutual decision which everyone appreciated”, remembers Jackie.

As it turned out though, Ayesha Takia decided to get married and she informed the makers about her inability to being a part of JKSAH where she was roped in to play the role of an alien.

“Really, I don’t quite know what actually transpired between the makers and Ayesha but after a month, I got a call once again, this time with an offer for the role of Tara”, says Jackie with glee in her voice, “I was like wow, now this is something that I really want to do. In any case I was in love with the script and the character of the alien, so I didn’t think twice.”

Did she ever feel that she was a second choice after all? “Arrey nahin, not at all. Such things happen in the industry. People do change their mind so it’s all cool”, smiles away Jackie.

Also starring Ruslaan Mumtaz and Vishal Malhotra in principal roles, ‘Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai’ has music by Sajid Wajid and lyrics by Sameer. A Warner Bros presentation and a co-production of Nikhil Advani and Mukesh Talreja, the film releases all over on 9th April.

- Rudhir Burman / Sampurn Wire