Millennials must have remembered that we used to see Mahabharat on Doordarshan every Sunday morning. The one actor from that serial, Pankaj Dheer, who is known for the great character he played, ‘Karna’. From that series, this actor got recognition all over the country and now many Gen Z kids know him as a villain from the Bollywood industry. But do you know that Pankaj Dheer was offered the role of Arjun in Mahabharat by B. R. Chopra?
It wasn’t difficult for Pankaj Dheer to make his career in the acting field as his father, C. L. Dheer, was a director. But still, with his talent, this actor made his place in the industry by himself. Earlier, he was offered the role of Arjun in Mahabharat. He was happy with the news, and he was excited too to work in an epic like Mahabharat. One fine day, the makers of this serial asked him to cut his moustache as it was needed by the character. But this actor refused to do so. He was so firm in his decision that he didn’t listen to anyone and thus lost the role of Arjun, who was later portrayed by Feroz Khan.
As he missed this golden opportunity, he had to struggle to find other new works, but Mahabharat was his destiny. B. R. Chopra called him again and asked him whether he was interested in playing the character of Karna or not? This actor’s answer to this question will make you surprised.
To know more about his journey in the acting field, his answer to B. R. Chopra’s question, the reason behind not cutting moustache and many more interesting things, watch this very exclusive interview of actor Pankaj Dheer on Lehren Retro.