Mumbai, Nov 24: Filmmaker S Shankar said Saturday he had approached "The Terminator" star Arnold Schwarzenegger to play the antagonist in "2.0" but things didn't work out and the role finally went to Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar.
Rajinikanth will be back in the role of 'Chitti' in the second installment of the mega-hit "Robot", which is slated to be released on November 29.
"We had thought of casting Arnold. We had talked and allotted dates also. But somehow things did not work out as the contracts of Hollywood and India are contradictory. So we thought of looking at a good cast from the Indian film industry," Shankar said at a press conference here.
The director said Lyca (producers of 2.0) and Akshay were in talks for a remake of a film called 'Kathi' in Hindi.
"Everyone told me to consider Akshay and I also thought it would be nice. I narrated the story to him and he said yes," the director said.
Shankar is confident that the film would connect with everyone as it has an international theme. The technology, he said, was better than the previous film and it was the reason they decided to title the film "2.0".
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Amritsar (PTI): Former president Ram Nath Kovind on Friday said that with digital transformation, economic reforms and a strong focus on the ease of doing business, India is moving towards becoming a global economic powerhouse.
He was speaking after inaugurating the 19th edition of the Punjab International Trade Expo (PITEX) in Amritsar.
The former president said that this 19th edition of PITEX is being organised at a time when India is recognised as one of the fastest-growing large economies in the world.
Speaking at the inaugural ceremony of the event organised by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) the former president, while referring to Punjab, said the state is a living example of courage, sacrifice and enterprise.
"The spiritual light of Sri Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple) inspires peace and humanity across the world. The heritage of Punjab is deep and inspiring," Kovind said, according to a statement issued by the PITEX.
The former president congratulated the PHDCCI for hosting the 19th edition of PITEX and suggested that the chamber should expand PITEX outside Punjab.
He proposed that a similar event should also be held in New Delhi.
