Chennai Express releasing on 2013

Chennai Express

Chennai Express is an upcoming Bollywood action romance film directed by Rohit Shetty and starring Shahrukh Khan and Deepika Padukone in lead roles. This is the second collaboration between Khan and Padukone after the 2007 blockbuster Om Shanti Om. Principal photography began on the 27th of September 2012

Production

Development

Khan and Shetty had originally planned to team up for a remake of the 1982 film Angoor. After Singham, Shetty had begun writing the script of the film but left it mid-way.^[2] Incidentally, he had the script of Chennai Express ready to be narrated to Khan as a back-up due to the difficulty of obtaining the actor's filming dates.^[3] Upon being narrated the script, Khan was impressed with the idea of Chennai Express and agreed to star in it. With this development, the remake of Angoor was pushed back.
When Rohit was asked about the story of the film, he said, "It's a hard-core commercial film with a romantic angle. The story is about this man's travel from Mumbai to Rameshwaram and what happens during the journey. There is a lot of romance keeping Shah Rukh in mind but it will also be a typical Rohit Shetty film with cars blowing and lots of action."^[4]

Casting and Filming

Khan was the first actor to be approached with the script, and hence the first lead actor to be signed on to the film. Incidentally, Shetty stated that despite the title, Khan would not play the role of a South Indian in the film. The casting of the lead heroine was speculated for a good deal of time. Names such as Kareena Kapoor Asin Thottumkal or Deepika Padukone were rumored by the media.^[5] In an interview, a visibly angry Shetty denied all rumours surrounding the leading heroine, stating that the cast would be finalized in April 2012 and that he was going to cast an established actress as the leading lady.^[6] However, in August it was officially announced that Deepika Padukone has been signed to play the lead opposite Khan.^[7] Principal photography began on the 27th of September 2012.