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The 1980s mythological epic series Mahabharat on Doordarshan included many prominent celebrities including Mukesh Khanna as Bhishma and Nitish Bhardwaj as Lord Krishna Roopa Ganguly as Draupadi and Puneet Issar as Duryodhana. But did you know that the actor who played role of legendary Karna was first offered the role of Arjuna but he refused it just because of his one stubborn condition.  The Actor Who Refused To Play Arjun Due To His… Here we are talking about actor Pankaj Dheer who gained huge popularity after playing the role in renowned late producer BR Chopra’s cult series but initially it was not planned for him to take the role of Karna. In a chat with Lehren Retro few years back Pankaj shared When I auditioned the dialogue writers Rahi Masoom Raza Bhring Tupkari sahab and Pandit Narendra Sharma ji were all there. They felt I was a great fit for the role of Arjuna. We shook hands and I signed the contract. Then BR Chopra called me up and said that I would also need to portray Brihannala Arjunas real form which meant I had to shave off my moustache. I was like ‘No way I can’t do that.’ I explained that my face just wouldn’t look right without it. He replied ‘Are you an actor or not? You’re turning down such a significant role over a moustache? I just don’t get it. When Pankaj Dheer Revealed That He Was… Later the actor shared an interesting anecdote from that incident. He mentioned that due to his circumstances BR Chopra had initially kicked him out of the office. However when he struggled to find the right actor for role of Surya and Kuntis son he reached out to him again to play Karna in Mahabharat. Looking back it was a foolish move on my part but at that moment I could only see things that way. Chopra sahab told me ‘Get out of this door and don’t come back.’ He literally threw me out of his office. My contract was ripped up and for six months I wandered around doing dubbing work. Then Chopra sir called me back and I believe that was destiny at play. He asked if I could take on the role of Karna. I was curious and asked him ‘Sir I don’t have to shave off my moustache right?’ He assured me I wouldn’t have to. It truly felt like fate that I ended up playing Karna