When Shah Rukh Khan replaced 'Sultan' actor Salman Khan in 'Chak De India'

Salman Khan was reportedly the first choice of the makers of "Chak De India," and not Shah Rukh Khan. It has been reported that director of the sports drama wanted Salman to play the character of Hockey coach Kabir Khan in the film, but that did not happen due to a difference in opinion.

According to a report in Catch News, director Shimit Amin had first approached Salman with the script of "Chak De India" that was produced by Aditya Chopra. Salman reportedly was not happy with the film's climax as he wanted it to be a match between India and Pakistan, rather than the scripted India and Australia. However, Shimit and Aditya were not ready to change the climax of the film and thus the role went to Shah Rukh.

"Chak De India" turned out to be a blockbuster hit and Shah Rukh's performance in the film received huge appreciation, both from fans and the critics. Salman eventually had confessed that he did not think this movie would have worked.

"I had an issue with the climax of 'Chak De India'. In fact, Aditya Chopra promised me that this would be the biggest hit of the year and warned me to not miss out on the film, but I didn't think so. I was fortunate that my film, 'Partner' which released that year did equally well at the box office. 'Chak De India' did really well. Shah Rukh Khan has been appreciated, people have loved the film and I was proved terribly wrong," the report quoted Salman as saying then.

Now, Salman and Shah Rukh are all set to hit the screens with their respective upcoming movies -- "Sultan" and "Raees." Both the films were slated to have a box office clash as they were expected to be released around the same time around Eid. However, latest reports suggest that makers of the Shah Rukh starrer are thinking to shift the film's release to avoid the clash.