Has Ranbir Kapoor backed off from starring in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bollywood film ‘Baiju Bawra’?

While fans of Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s brand of Bollywood films are eagerly awaiting the release of ‘Gangibai Kathiawadi’, followed by ‘Heera Mandi’, there is a third project by the maverick filmmaker that has created buzz recently, but for all the wrong reasons.

‘Baiju Bawra’, the tragic love story that is being remade by Bhansali, could very well be without a lead star if rumours are to be believed. According to reports, Ranbir Kapoor, who was in the running to star in his second Bhansali film after his debut in ‘Saawariya’, has opted out of the project.

The film had grabbed eyeballs with its star-studded cast, which was said to feature Alia Bhatt, Deepika Padukone and Ajay Devgn along with Kapoor.

However, the latest news is that Kapoor has expressed his uncertainty with the project and has opted out of it to concentrate on the projects he has in hand, including the supernatural drama ‘Brahmastra’, along with ‘Shamshera’ with Vaani Kapoor and Sanjay Dutt.

The actor is also currently filming his next with Luv Ranjan, which also stars Shraddha Kapoor. With his plate full of projects and reported plans of a wedding to Bhatt by end of this year or early next year, it is being said that the actor politely stepped away from the film.

A source told online portal Bollywood Hungama: “Ranbir has expressed his confusion to Bhansali and the team as well. He is not sure of ‘Baiju Bawra’ and with another Dharma project in his kitty; RK doesn’t seem to be keen anymore on working with SLB again. Not many know that he did not have a great experience working with him during ‘Saawariya’ and they have never done a film after that. So it’s most likely that Ranbir is going to opt out of the project, although nothing was ever locked on papers.”

At the time of his debut, it was reported that both Kapoor and his co-star Sonam Kapoor faced a tough time with Bhansali on the sets of the film, which tanked at the box office.