Bharati Dubey (MID-DAY; January 23, 2015)

Two years ago, Subhash Ghai had announced plans of making a film on Sarabjit Singh, a few months after the Indian death row convict died following a brutal assault by his jail mates in Pakistan. But now, he has decided to shelve the film for practical as well as diplomatic reasons.

Says Ghai, “We could not find the right cast. Besides, the Indo-Pak relationship is at such a juncture that it wouldn’t be right to do a film like that. I feel it just isn’t the right time.”

There were reports about Sonakshi being approached to play the character of Sarabjit’s sister, Daljit Kaur. The name of newcomer Anurag Sinha was also doing the rounds for the protagonist’s role. Ghai had earlier talked about having approached Amitabh Bachchan for the role but a packed date diary prevented Big B from accepting the offer.

Ishwar Singh Muchhal had been chosen to direct the biopic on Sarabjit, who had been sentenced to death after being convicted for a string of bombings that killed 14 persons in Pakistan’s Punjab in 1990. Though Pakistani authorities labelled him an Indian spy, his family claimed that he was a victim of mistaken identity and had strayed across the border.

In April 2013, he was attacked in the Kot Lakhpat Jail by fellow inmates, sustaining severe head injuries and slipping into a coma. About a week later, he died — though details of his death remained sketchy.