The debate about nepotism in the Indian film industry has not ended since Kangana Ranaut's jibe at Karan Johar in an episode of Koffee with Karan prior to the release of her film, Rangoon. The debate over the years has become so noisy, and dirty, even. Now, adding two more cents to this whole discussion, popular filmmaker Anurag Kashyap has cited the example of Ranveer Singh in an interview with Faye D'Souza. Anurag said that Ranveer is often called out for his distant relationship to Anil Kapoor's family, but there was a time when the actor was rejected after auditioning for Shaitaan and the time when producers didn't want him in Bombay Velvet. #UnlockCinemaSaveJobs: Dharma Productions, Anurag Kashyap, RSVP Movies And Others Appeal To Government For Restarting Cinemas.

"However much people call him an insider because of some remote connection, from two generations before, the man has struggled," Anurag began. The filmmaker revealed that the actor was rejected in an audition for his cult film, Shaitan. He added, "[He] is an actor who when I wanted to cast him in Bombay Velvet, I had a tough time. My studios and nobody believed in me and told me they will not give me money if I made the film with him. So even that Ranveer Singh, that I know two personal stories of my own production that rejected him, he is a star today."

Bombay Velvet was a big-budget period crime thriller based on the book  Mumbai Fables. It starred Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma in lead roles, while Karan Johar played the antagonist. The movie bombed at the box office but has earned a cult following over the years.

He added, "When Kangana and I were friends and we're like ‘We will do this film’. How many people believed in Queen? Nobody did. We went down and fought that battle. This industry was about supporting their people, like any other business." For the uninitiated, Queen became a turning point in Kangana's career. Urmila Matondkar Joins the Nepotism Debate in the Industry, Says She Was Discriminated Against More by the Media than Film Fraternity.

Anurag also said that nepotism debate is so 2000. "Right now, with OTT coming into the picture, that debate is pointless. There are much more opportunities on OTT, there are much more outsiders coming in. That was the time I fought that battle," he stated.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 19, 2020 06:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).