Shah Rukh Khan And Priyanka Chopra's 2007 Film Was Cancelled, Vishal Punjabi Says, 'I Was Deported'

Shah Rukh Khan is one of the leading superstars in Bollywood. He not only rules the silver screens with his presence but also rules many hearts due to his humble nature and down-to-earth personality. Popular photographer, Vishal Punjabi, also known as The Wedding Filmer, opened up about SRK's generous nature and revealed how the actor helped him when he was deported from the country because of his visa issues.

Vishal Punjabi recalls planning a big film with SRK and Priyanka Chopra

In a recent interview with the Brown Game Strong YouTube channel, Vishal Punjabi talked about his association with Shah Rukh Khan, which has been longer than a decade. He shared that he, along with his close friend, Zoya Akhtar, was planning to make a big Bollywood film in 2007 and roped in SRK and Priyanka Chopra in the lead roles. He said:

“In 2007, I was about to make a big Bollywood film. I had written the script with a friend of mine called Zoya Akhtar. She’s a big director now, but at the time, she was struggling to make her first film… Priyanka had said yes to my film, Shah Rukh had said yes to my film. Me and Reema and Zoya were kicked about it."

Vishal Punjabi was deported from India

Vishal also revealed that even before the shooting started, he was deported from India. The photographer explained the reason behind it and shared that he was on a tourist visa in the country back then and was technically not allowed to work. In Vishal's words:

"And then I got deported from India because I didn’t have an OCI. I had a tourist visa, and I was technically not allowed to work on a tourist visa. It was very stupid of me, because I thought it’s India, they’d fix it.” 

Vishal Punjabi reveals how SRK tried to help him despite the government’s scrutiny

The photographer also revealed that Shah Rukh Khan came under the government’s scrutiny after the former was deported from the country. Vishal further alleged that the previous governments were not very kind to King Khan, probably because of his religion. However, Shah Rukh tried his best to bring the photographer back to India as the duo was expected to work on a lot of projects together. He said:

“I got deported, and there was nothing anybody could do. The fact that I worked with Shah Rukh made my case worse because he was under scrutiny. For some reason, governments aren’t very kind to him, I think it has to do with his religion. It was heartbreaking for him as well because I was in charge of a lot of big projects for him. He tried everything that he could to see me come back… I went through a very hard time, but he worked tirelessly to get me back.”

About Vishal Punjabi, aka The Wedding Filmer

Vishal Punjabi is a popular photographer who originally hails from Accra, Ghana. He primarily worked in advertising and films before starting his business venture, The Wedding Filmer, in 2010. Vishal has made some spectacular wedding films and also has some of the best Indian contemporary love songs to his credit. His portfolio includes the weddings of some notable celebrities, Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli, Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh, and Kiara Advani and Sidharth Malhotra.

What are your views on Vishal Punjabi's revelations?

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