Jackie in, Pari out

Jackie in, Pari out

The Kick actress now stars opposite Saif Ali Khan in Salman Khan's third production, Jugalbandi

Nayandeep Rakshit

Remember the time Jacqueline Fernandez confessed that Salman Khan had promised her another film? Well, Khan is a man of his word and has offered her the leading role in Jugalbandi, the third production under his banner, Salman Khan Films (SKF) opposite Saif Ali Khan. Initially, Parineeti Chopra's name was attached to the project as the female lead.

A source confirms the development. "Salman felt Jacqueline fit the bill perfectly and asked her to come on board." This happened right after Baba Siddique's iftaar party when onlookers saw the actress sharing a dinner table with the Khan'daan.

A source close to the heroine says, "Jackie is very fond of Salman and she can't say no to him. Plus, she has liked the script. So she will be doing the film. Currently, she has asked her team to work out the dates for the film."

Jacqueline, who is busy promoting Brothers, will soon start filming Dishoom opposite Varun Dhawan and John Abraham and Flying Jat opposite Tiger Shroff, almost simultaneously. She also has Housefull 3 on her plate. With such a choc-a-bloc schedule, she will need to find time for Jugalbandi, expected on floors end-2015.

This would mean another blow for Parineeti Chopra, who has had no releases since Kill Dil last November. Not just that, she has not even signed anything yet. "Pari had only been in talks for Jugalbandi with Saif Ali Khan. Now with this also landing in Jacqueline's lap, Parineeti has no films in hand, except Sultan maybe for which her mentor Aditya Chopra is rooting for his protge." But then again, After Hrs has earlier reported that Salman wants Kriti Sanon in place of Pari in Sultan. Will Pari lose out on the YRF project as well? We don't

know yet!

nayandeep.rakshit@dnaindia.net