Bollywood actor Pankaj Tripathi is not a part of the upcoming film Panga that stars Kangana Ranaut in the main lead, according to a report in Mid-Day. Tripathi, who has received appreciation for films like Newton, Bareilly Ki Barfi, Stree and others, was earlier announced as a cast member of the sports drama. But when the trailer was released around two weeks ago, his absence left his fans confused.
Now, it has been learnt that the actor exited the project due to busy schedule. The report quoted a source from the production team as saying, “Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari [director] was keen to have Pankaj sir on board. She had approached him to play a crucial character, and he, too, had given his nod. Pankaj sir was expected to join the team in the Bhopal schedule in February.”
The source further revealed, “However, he already had his plate full with Mirzapur 2, Kagaz, ’83, Ludo, Mimi and Kargil Girl. So, he decided to bow out of the movie.”
“At that time, I was shooting for Kagaz, which is produced by Salman Khan Films and directed by Satish Kaushik. It would have been great to do Panga, but unfortunately, the dates didn’t work out,” Tripathi told the news daily.
Besides Ranaut, Panga also features Jassi Gill, Neena Gupta and Richa Chadda. The sports drama revolves around the life of a Kabaddi player who decides to return to the sports years after her marriage.
Directed by Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari and produced by Fox Star Studios, the film is scheduled to be theatrically released in India on 24 January.