In May 2013, Subhash Ghai announced that he is re-working his 1993 action thriller, Khalnayak. “It won't exactly be a remake but an adaptation to suit today's audience,“ he had asserted. He had rubbished rumours that John Abraham would play the character essayed by Sanjay Dutt in the original, but admitted that they had a few directors in mind and would be making an announcement soon.The subject was then forgotten.

Now Mirror has learnt that Sanjay Leela Bhansali has approached Ghai with an offer to remake the film. Says a source, “Bhansali has proposed a collaboration between his production house and Ghai's banner Mukta Arts. The meeting took place in Ghai's house and he is not averse to the idea.“

Khalnayak revolves around the capture of dreaded gangster, Ballu (Sanjay Dutt), by inspector Ram (Jackie Shroff). Ballu escapes and Ram's cop girlfriend, Ganga (Madhuri Dixit) goes undercover to reel him in. But eventually she lets him go and is arrested for aiding a criminal and accused of being in a relationship with him. As she stands trial, Ballu surrenders and swears that Ganga is still pure. Ghai had once revealed that the film was conceived with Nana Patekar in mind. But things didn't work out. He rewrote the script and cast Sanjay Dutt.

Khalnayak released on May 26, 1993. In April, Sanjay was arrested under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA). The six-minute song, Choli ke peechhe kya hai, also created a storm over its lyrics. The two controversies ensured he didn't have to spend on pre-release publicity. The film went on to become a box-office hit. It was remade in Telugu and Tamil as Hero with Vinod Kumar in Sanjay's role.

Khalnayak is the latest addition to the list of Ghai's film which are being remade. Jackie Shroff's Hero's upcoming reboot is a co-production between Ghai and Salman Khan, while Karan Johar is collaborating with Ghai on Ram Lakhan's remake. Buzz is Arjun Kapoor will reprise the role played by his uncle Anil Kapoor.