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Just a few days before the film goes on floors, the cast of Madhur Bhandarkar's film Heroine has undergone a change. Thanks to leading lady Kareena Kapoor. According to sources close to the project, the actress refused to get intimate with actor Arunoday Singh on screen. And Randeep Hooda had to fill in Singh's shoes.

The Sudhir Mishra protg, Arunoday Singh had been a part of the project from the very beginning. At that time, Singh was to share screen space with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. An excited Arunoday had then said, ""Why feel the pressure? I am not going to fight a battle. To work with Aishwarya would be amazing and I am looking forward to it.""

Unluckily for Singh, he is no more a part of the project. Randeep Hooda is. The decision to replace one with the other has however, come as a surprise. Hooda, in his Bollywood career spanning a decade, has carved a niche for himself in films that are generally tagged as 'different'. The five film old Singh too entered the same space, eight years later. But leading lady Kareena seems to prefer Hooda to the newer actor.

""Kareena approved of Randeep filling up for Arunoday. She was also informed at the earlier stage when Randeep was being approached,"" informed our source.

""Randeep is very happy to work with Bhandarkar and UTV. Heroine, after all, is a big film. He will be playing a cricketer in it,"" added the source.

When contacted, Bhandarkar confirmed that Randeep has indeed replaced Arunoday in the project and added, ""The role was changed. Randeep suits it more now. Arunoday is a very talented guy. I am looking forward to working with him in the future.""Despite repeated attempts, Kareena remained unavailable for comment.

Arunoday Singh

Arunoday Singh, who was the first one to be signed on for "Heroine", is now out of the film. The reason was believed to be that Kareena Kapoor refused to get intimate with him.

Touted as his big break after "Yeh Saali Zindagi", Arunoday says, he was pretty excited to work in a big project like "Heroine". "Oh, I would have been very good, I would have worked very hard for the film and my character, but all this is just a part of being an actor; everyone's not perfect for every role," says Arunoday.

What about the news that he was replaced because Kareena wasn't comfortable doing intimate scenes with him and asked for a more established name? "See, it's the director and the producer who finalise such things. Personally, I don't think any of this is true, because they are all very seasoned and professional people. I mean it would be quite ridiculous if I was replaced for the said reason. So, I wouldn't believe these rumours," says the actor.

Is he disappointed about being replaced by Randeep Hooda? "I'm only disappointed that I didn't get a chance to do the role. There is nothing to say beyond that. I respect Madhur and whatever he wants to do with his film. He's trying very hard just to get it made and I know what that takes, so I just wish him good luck. Hope it's a wonderful film," he says.

Didn't he feel like confronting the director regarding the reason for him being dropped from the film? After all, he was the first male lead to be signed for the movie? "I did ask. And the reason that I was given was that they felt I wouldn't be the right person for it in terms of age ; that's what he told me. And then, after a point I don't ask these things. If I am told that I've been replaced in a film, or a role, or in a play, or anything for that matter, I try not to let it affect me personally because all this is a part of our job and all of us are just struggling to get by," explains Arunoday.

Is he still struggling due to this change of plan, and thereby keeping a low profile? "Not at all. I was out of the country just for fun. I travel a lot and haven't had the time to travel for the last couple of months, so I just thought I'll go out and explore. Moreover, I just wanted to remind myself that there is much more to life than just Bollywood," he signs off.