In the initial years of his directorial journey, Suneel Darshan mostly cast Karisma Kapoor as the female lead. However, in his next production venture, Raj Kanwar’s Andaaz (2003), he did not go with Kareena, but rather cast two fairly fresh faces: Priyanka Chopra and Lara Dutta. One day, Priyanka Chopra came to my office. Also Read | Kangana Ranaut vs Saurav Das: BJP MP blasts CJP spokesperson over age, work, Gen Z protestsPriyanka Chopra reminded Suneel Darshan of a young RekhaIt struck Suneel Darshan that she reminded him of a young Rekha. Priyanka Chopra was most recently seen in director Frank E Flowers’ The Bluff (2026).