Paresh Rawal Claims OMG 2 Was Built On His Original Idea; Says Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, Karan Johar Knew It

Hyderabad: Akshay Kumar and Pankaj Tripathi-starrer OMG 2 (2023) received praise from both critics and audiences after its release. However, actor Paresh Rawal has now claimed that the film's original idea came from him and that he was never credited for it.

Speaking on a podcast, Paresh said he had first shared the idea with filmmaker Amit Rai, who later directed OMG 2. He explained that although he is not a writer, he wanted to develop the story with Amit by contributing ideas.

"I told him very clearly that I am not a writer. I won't write the film, but I will give ideas and point out where we are going wrong," Paresh said.

According to the actor, the original story was about a schoolboy who gets caught masturbating. A video of the incident goes viral, making his life difficult. The boy's father, in Paresh's version, was a tourist guide at the famous Khajuraho temple.

Paresh said Amit later suggested changing the father's profession to a part-time priest at the Mahakal Temple. He added that the two worked together on the script and even brought renowned sexologist Dr Prakash Kothari on board to help shape the story.

The veteran actor also revealed that they pitched the film to filmmaker Anurag Kashyap and later to Dharma Productions' Somen Mishra. However, Somen reportedly felt that the film would not work.

Paresh further said that when he first developed the story, he never wanted to include a divine character. Instead, he had imagined a biker guiding the boy's father through his journey.

"I approached Ajay Devgn and Salman Khan for the biker's role. I deliberately stayed away from Akshay because I didn't want people to think it was a sequel to OMG," he said.

According to Paresh, while he believed the script was still being developed, Amit later informed him that Akshay Kumar was interested in the project. He believes producer Ashwin Varde shared the script with Akshay, after which the film took a different direction.

Paresh said he repeatedly requested Amit not to turn the project into an OMG franchise, but his advice was ignored.

He also revealed that Akshay personally asked him to be a part of OMG 2. However, Paresh declined because he no longer recognised the story he had helped create.

"I spoke to Akshay. He asked me to do the film. I told him, 'No. This isn't the film I had envisioned. There is no role of God in this story.' He tried to convince me, but I had lived with the script from the beginning. I knew exactly what it was supposed to be. That's why I walked away," Paresh said.

The actor also expressed disappointment over not receiving any credit for the story or concept.

"The saddest part is that I wasn't even given credit for the story or the concept. My name wasn't mentioned anywhere. Amit, Akshay, Ashwin, Ajay Devgn, Karan Johar and Salman Khan... all know it was my idea and my story. Ajay and Salman probably said no because of the subject. They thought it could become controversial. I tried explaining the concept to them," he said.

For those unaware, Pankaj Tripathi eventually played the role of the father in OMG 2, while Akshay Kumar appeared as Shiv's messenger, 'Shiv ka Doot'. Paresh and Akshay had earlier shared the screen in the original OMG - Oh My God! released in 2012.