Sooraj Barjatya reveals Salman Khan wanted to do Uunchai but the filmmaker turned him down: ‘I said no’

Filmmaker Sooraj Barjatya has revealed that his close friend and long-time collaborator Salman Khan was keen to be a part of his upcoming directorial Uunchai, which is about three friends in their sixties, on a trek to Mount Everest.
At the trailer launch of Uunchai, which stars Amitabh Bachchan, Anupam Kher and Boman Irani among others, Sooraj said Salman knew about the film all throughout and had even discussed it with him.
“When I was making this, Salman asked me, ‘Sooraj what are you making?’ then, ‘Why are you going to the hills?’ Then he also told me, ‘I can do this film!’ I said no! Because we all know he can climb the mountains. But I needed people who can look as if they can’t,” the filmmaker said.

Sooraj Barjatya and Salman Khan have worked on blockbusters like Maine Pyar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hai Koun, Hum Saath-Saath Hai and Prem Ratan Dhan Paayo.

Uunchai marks Sooraj’s seventh directorial and the first film where the central character isn’t named Prem. When asked about this, Kher interrupted and said, “My nickname in the film is Prem!”
Sooraj added that he has let go of everything which was restricting him, including falling back on the same character name for good luck.
“In this film, maine sab bandhan todd diye hai. There once was a charm that if you name (a character) Prem, the film will work. But I’ve let go of that. In the pandemic, everything was slipping away, so there was no point holding onto anything,” he added.
Uunchai marks a departure from the lavish song and dance films, usually set against the backdrop of a wedding, Sooraj Barjatya is known for. The filmmaker said going away from that pattern for Uunchai was his biggest challenge.

 
“Honestly speaking, this is the first time I’m making a film like this. In 2016, writer Sunil told me the subject of the film about four friends, all 65 plus. It was a humorous story about their mission to trek to the Everest base camp.
“He called it death, but when I heard it, I found it like life. The subject didn’t leave me. In the pandemic, when we were going through our challenges, I decided take my biggest challenge. If you see the trailer, there’s no marriage, no functions. I tried to put temples though.”
The filmmaker said he never set his films beyond film studios but for Uunchai, he travelled to  Kanpur, Agra, Gorakhpur and shot at the height of thousands of feet. “It was liberating for me,” he added.
Uunchai, also starring Neena Gupta, Sarika, Parineeti Chopra, Nafisa Ali and Danny Denzongpa, is scheduled to release on November 11.