Sonu Sood to play Big B`s son

Mumbai: Watching Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan playing father and son on screen is nothing new. In a film that marks the return of Telugu super-director Puri Jagannath in Bollywood, Sonu Sood and not Junior Bachchan has been cast as Big B`s son. It was felt by the makers that Sonu bears an uncanny resemblance to the young Amitabh of the early 1970s.

"If you put Mr Bachchan`s stills from `Anand` and `Pyar Ki Kahani` next to Sood`s stills you`d think it`s the same person," says a source close to the project. The project, earlier titled "Bhudda: Don`t F..K With Him", is now titled "Bhudda: Panga Nahin Lene Ka". Apparently, Ram Gopal Varma - the film`s producer, was keen on the earlier title but the `F` word didn`t go down too well with Big B. The project puts a lid on all speculation about RGV`s apparently shaky relationship with the Bachchans. Moreover, RGV is also directing a film starring Abhishek Bachchan in January. Except for the fact that the expletive from the title "Bhudda: Don`t F..K With Him" has now been deleted on Big B`s suggestion, the ambitious project directed by Telugu cinema`s top director Puri Jagannath has suffered no dent due to Big B`s meagre dates. Senior Bachchan had earlier decided to focus on his television commitments for "Kaun Banega Crorepati" this year. But now, in what appears to be a swift change of plans Puri Jagannath`s film will be shot from October onwards. Speaking from Hyderabad, Puri said: "Yes, I`ve cast Sonu Sood with Mr Bachchan. I`ve done two Telugu films with Sonu, he`s a very talented actor but I can`t talk about his role. Mr Bachchan`s character requires two heroines, so does Sonu`s. I`ll be finalizing them shortly." On playing Big B`s son in the film, Sonu said: "It`s a dream come true for me. I`ve waited for ten years to work with Bachchan Saab... It`s an intense cop`s role and the best part is that I got the role because everyone in the project says I look like Mr Bachchan of `Zanjeer`. I remember it was Mani Ratnam who said it first. In `Yuva`, when Abhishek and I were working together as brothers, Mani Sir said I look more like Bachchan Saab than he did." IANS