Paresh Rawal says ‘OMG 2’ was his idea, Akshay Kumar took the script and never gave him credit: ‘My name was not mentioned anywhere’ | Hindi movie news

Released in 2023, ‘OMG 2’ emerged as a critical and commercial success despite facing lengthy scrutiny from the CBFC for mixing sex education and religious themes. After several changes including presentation the film was finally cleared with an A certificate Akshay KumarA divine messenger character instead of Lord Shiva. It has reportedly grossed over Rs 221 crore worldwide. Acting first ‘OMG’ Paresh Rawal The sequel starred Pankaj Tripathi in the lead role. Now, Rawal has claimed that the film is basically based on an idea he developed with the director Amit RaiBut there has been a big change since Akshay Kumar came on board. According to the veteran actor, the final version was very different from the story he envisioned, which forced him to walk away from the project. He also complained that he was not credited for the original story or concept.Paresh recalls approaching Amit Roy, whose work he admired in ‘Road to Sangam’, with the initial idea. “I approached Amit Rai, the director of Road to Sangam, and asked him if he was planning another film. I admire him a lot. I told him, ‘I have an idea. Let’s sit down and write it.’ I told him I’m not a writer but I can contribute ideas and help identify where we’re going wrong because I understand a bit of scripting,” he said.The actor said the original story revolved around a young boy whose private act was recorded and circulated online, leading to humiliation and social isolation. The narrative follows his father as he struggles to restore his son’s dignity and challenge the stigma surrounding the incident.“The story is about a boy who is caught masturbating, and a video of the incident goes viral, making his life miserable. His father was a tourist guide at the Khajuraho temple. Amit suggested he become a part-time priest at the Mahakal temple. We developed the script together and even brought sexologist Dr Prakash Kothari on board. We had several meetings because our aim was to make the film educational, entertaining and not vulgar. We were deeply involved in the process,” Paresh said.He also said that the screenplay has been discussed Anurag Kashyap before arriving Somen mixed Dharma Productions. “Someone outright said it wouldn’t work.”Paresh maintained that the film was never conceived as a sequel to *OMG*. Instead, he envisioned a biker acting as the hero’s guide rather than a divine figure. “Our original idea was to have a biker guide the father, not God. In the first OMG, God appeared because the case was against God. But this film was about a father’s fight to get justice for his son. There was no need for a divine character. We wanted someone like Quader Khan’s character in Mukaddar Ka Sikandaar,” he explained.He disclosed that he had communicated Ajay Devgn And Salman Khan Akshay Kumar was deliberately not approached for the role of the biker.“I didn’t approach Akshay because people assumed it was OMG 2, although that wasn’t the plan,” he said. Paresh also claimed that while the project was taking shape, discussions about Akshay joining the film began. “I was under the impression that we were still figuring things out. We even had a meeting with Vipul Shah of Optimistics. They also asked about Akshay, and I said that if I wanted to do it with him, I would have contacted him directly. Akshay and I were partners in OMG. I didn’t need anyone to bridge the gap,” he recalled.According to Paresh, Amit Rai later informed him that Akshay wanted to act in the project. “A few days later, Amit Rai called and told me that Akshay wanted to do the film. The problem was that Amit had tentatively written ‘OMG 2’ in the script because the genre was the same,” said Paresh.The producer also complained Ashwin Varde Akshay had a role in taking up the project. “In one of our meetings, Ashwin Varde was present. That’s when they decided they wanted to do it with Akshay,” he alleged. Paresh said that once the project began to evolve in a different direction, he decided to walk away rather than contest the changes with Amit Rai.“I told Amit I didn’t want to go ahead with it. Amit said, ‘But they want to do it.’ They took the script from him. I told Amit I can’t fight him; he is my friend If he chooses, I wish him well. I repeatedly told them not to franchise it because it wasn’t one. But they still went ahead,” he said.He also added that Akshay later approached him with an offer to act in the film, but he declined because he no longer recognized it as the story he had helped develop. “I spoke to Akshay. He asked me to do the film. I told him, ‘No. This is not the film I envisioned. God has no role in this story.’ He tried to convince me, but I stayed with the script from the beginning. I just knew it was meant to be. That’s why I left,” Paresh said.The role of the father eventually went to Pankaj Tripathi, while Akshay Kumar appeared as “Shiva Ka Doot”.Paresh said his biggest disappointment was not being recognized for his contribution to the original concept. “The saddest thing is that I wasn’t even credited for the story or the idea. My name was never mentioned,” he claims.He also insisted that several prominent names in the industry were aware that the idea came from him. “Amit, Akshay, Ashwin, Ajay Devgan, Karan Johar and Salman Khan… all know that it was my idea and my story. Ajay and Salman probably said no because of the subject matter. They thought it might be controversial. I tried to explain the idea to them,” he said.