Why Rani & Bhansali are no longer friends

Here's why the equation between Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Rani soured

Sanjay Leela Bhansali and one of his favourite muses, Rani Mukerji, have had a fallout and have completely stopped communicating with each other. And it all happened because of her last release, Dil Bole Hadippa.

Rani (who earned accolades for her role in SLB's Black) has always been like an extended family member at the Bhansali home. Not only was she close to Sanjay but also his mom and his sister Bela Sehgal. So when Bela decided to direct a film, it was a given that the actress would feature in it.



Says a source, "Soon after she came on board, they had differences. The main one being Bela wanting to cast Shahid Kapoor opposite her. The actress shot it down because she felt he looked much younger than her. Things soured when, shortly after, Rani went on to sign Dil Bole Hadippa with Yash Raj Films' with Shahid Kapoor!"

Yet, Bela and Bhansali decided to give Rani another chance as they felt she must've had her reasons. The source continues, "The last straw came when Bela and Bhansali saw that the Rani-Shahid film had the title of Hadippa. Rani was part of many discussions on the film and she was aware that Bela's heart was set on that title, which was also registered in her name."

The Bhansali siblings felt that Rani had deliberately suggested that title to YRF. When Sanjay confronted the actress, she cried and pleaded ignorance but the damage was done. As Bhansali refused to give up the title of Hadippa; YRF put Dil Bole in front of Hadippa as a token gesture.

A source close to the director says, "Both brother and sister feel very let down by Rani. Things are not the same between the actress and them. Time will heal wounds and maybe Sanjay will work with Rani in the future. But right now, the wounds are still fresh and they need to heal."

Rani Mukerji remained unavailable for comment.