Here's a little more on Billoo Barber, the film that is being produced by Shah Rukh Khan and directed by Priyadrashan. Apparently, Priyadrashan did go to Akshay Kumar, one of his favourite actors, with the role. It's only when Akshay refused that SRK stepped into the picture. So it's not that Priyadarshan has changed sides.

Apparently, the director was supposed to make a film for SRK. During the course of their conversation, the subject of Billoo Barber came up and Priyadrashan asked SRK if he would be interested in acting in the film. SRK is believed to have asked for a full narration after which he decided to not only act in the movie but also to produce it. The larger role in the film, however, belongs to Irrfan Khan, who is Billoo Barber. The role of Irrfan's wife in the film will now be played by Lara Dutta after Tabu had turned it down and Amisha was rejected. Apparently the female role is not very meaty which is why Tabu turned it down in the first place. The other actors who have been signed on for the film are Om Puri, Rajpal Yadav and Asrani. Billoo Barber is a remake of a Malayalam film and its story is based on the friendship between Krishna and Sudama.