Actor Chitrangda Singh who is loved by critics and audiences alike for her acting chops turned down films that went on to become successful at the box office. In a conversation with HT City, she says she listened to too many people and lost out on many good films. Including a Shah Rukh Khan-starrer.

The 49-year-old says, “I made some really bad mistakes. I said no to (filmmaker) Anurag Kashyap for the role Richa Chadha portrayed in Gangs Of Wasseypur (2012)... (Filmmaker) Aanand L Rai offered me the role Kangana Ranaut did in Tanu Weds Manu (2011), and I said no. At that time, I listened to too many people and made some bad choices. You think other people know better, but that’s not always true.”

Chitrangda also recalls missing out on Chalte Chalte (2003) opposite Shah Rukh Khan, not because she declined it, but because she had stepped away from work and changed her phone number: “SRK told me himself when we were shooting an ad together that they were looking for my number. I had left work for seven or eight years. That’s when it really hits you.”

Recently seen in Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders, she adds that visibility remains a constant challenge in the industry. “It has a very short memory. If you’re not around, people forget, and you have to keep reminding them of what you’re capable of,” she shares.