Sajid Khan keeps pulling off these casting coups for his Housefull 2. If more than a dozen top rung actors weren’t enough, he has also managed to rope in the country’s best cricketers to feature in his film. The film, which was to have Akshay Kumar, John Abraham and Riteish Deshmukh, may also feature Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Suresh Raina now.
“Housefull 2 will be the first release after IPL 2012. Keeping the release date in mind, Sajid has included cricket elements in the script, so it turns out to be the right follow up to the cricket season,” informs a well placed source from the film’s unit. “With this latest development, the audience will get a chance to see superstars from Bollywood as well as the cricket world sharing space.”
While the cricketers themselves are already reeling under the strains of their cricket and other commercial activities, they might still manage to make time for the film. “Dhoni and Raina are key members of the Indian side and have a busy schedule ahead. But Sajid Nadiadwala’s prior relationship with the Indian cricket team might turn out to be handy here,” the source adds. “They have already held preliminary discussions and it’s just a matter of time before they start shooting. They are movie buffs themselves and want Housefull 2 to be the movie to watch immediately after an exhaustive IPL season.”
Nadiadwala had earlier managed to get the cream de la crème of Indian cricket for his Mujhse Shaadi Karogi. “He managed to rope in Kapil Dev, Navjot Singh Siddhu, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Irfan Pathan, Srinath and Parthiv Patel for the climax sequence of the Akshay Kumar-Salman Khan movie Mujhse Shaadi Karogi,” he continues, “Now a cricket sequence features an important part of Housefull 2 as well.”
When contacted, Sajid Nadiadwala refused to comment on the issue. Currently in London, he sent back a text message, saying, “It is too early to say anything as of now.”