Did you know 'Pavitra Rishta' actress Ankita Lokhande turned down Sanjay Leela Bhansali's offer twice?

New Delhi: Moving from television to movies seems like a gradual and expected transition for most telly actors. Well, even superstar Shah Rukh Khan kickstarted his luminous career with the small screen shows. Similarly, popular television actress Ankita Lokhande, who got immense fame with Ekta Kapoor's 'Pavitra Rishta' is making her big screen debut.

Ankita will be seen playing Jhalkari Bai in Kangana Ranaut starrer 'Manikarnika'. She played an ideal bahu Archana for five long years in 'Pavitra Rishta' and it made her a household name.

But do you know, she was actually approached by maverick filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali for his project. And wait, not once but twice! But Ankita turned it down both the times.

In an interview with DNA, the actress opened up about it. When asked whether turning down Bhansali's offer makes her regret her decision, she said, “Of course, I do regret it. Meri bewakoofi thi that I couldn’t do the film. I did not reject him or the movie. I genuinely wanted to do it but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to get back to work at that point of time. You need to be responsible towards your work. I do feel I missed out on a great opportunity. He is Sanjay Leela Bhansali, after all! I hope he forgives me (laughs).

Then, when prodded further about the second time he approachd and again she said 'no', the actress quips, “Yes, but again I messed up (laughs)! This might be my last chance to work with him if he offers me a film again...”

Well, we do hope Ankita gets third time lucky and the audience gets to see her in Bhansali's period drama avatar. SLB's last release 'Padmaavat' has done incredibly well at the Box Office and starred Deepika Padukone, Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor in lead roles.