Roshmilla Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 8, 2014)

Speaking to Mirror from Shimla, Dharmesh Darshan admitted that he was travelling around the country, quietly scouting for two new faces for the Dhadkan sequel. “They will be the new Shilpa Shetty and Mahima Chaudhary,” he asserted.

 Dharmesh, who will be ending his sabbatical with this film, is looking for two terrific dancers with a pan-India look. “Juhi (Chawla) and Karisma (Kapoor) were from the North, Shilpa from down South and Sushmita Sen from the East, there’s never been any regional bias. In fact, I may travel abroad because girls in London and New York are more Indian than girls here. Once I find the duo, I’ll package them according to the requirements of the script,” says Dharmesh who gave Juhi, Karisma and Shilpa makeovers in Lootera, Raja Hindustani and Dhadkan.

 Like Aashiqui 2, Dhadkan 2 will not feature the original cast of Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty, Shilpa and Mahima. “It’s a fresh concept and a younger film,” he said.

 Dharmesh who’s locked the script, says he has “committed in principle”to direct the film for Ratan Jain, but nothing is on paper yet. “If I can make the film without any creative compromises, I’d love to see Dhadkan grow and evolve.”