Paresh Rawal on not doing 'Oh My God 2': 'I didn't like the script, didn't want to be a part of it'

A lot of questions were raised when the sequel to the 2012 satire Oh My God was announced with Pankaj Tripathi and not Paresh Rawal. In an interview with Bollywood Bubble back in 2021, Rawal opened up on the same and revealed, “I didn’t like the script so didn’t want to be a part of it. I don’t like making a sequel just to encash on the first part like we did in the case of Hera Pheri.”

He added, “If you want to make a sequel then make it like Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. that you take a quantum leap and then do Lage Raho Munna Bhai.”

Monetary issues?

A report by Bollywood Hungama in 2021 said it was due to the actor’s fee that he had to step down. A source told the portal, “Paresh was definitely the first choice for Oh My God! 2, in-fact the makers had even started a conversation with him. However, the actor believed that he deserved money over and above his market value as he was the lead actor in the first part and was a major reason for its success. However, the makers felt that paying more would take the budget haywire.”

It added, “Paresh then gave another proposal of entering into a profit-sharing deal, however, even that didn’t work out as there were multiple producers involved in the project. After multiple attempts to be on the same page, the monetary deal didn’t work out and eventually Paresh decided to part ways as he strongly felt that he deserved more than what he was offered. It’s only after Paresh’s exit that the makers went ahead to sign Pankaj Tripathi. They are now confident that Pankaj Tripathi will bring in the much needed unique flavour to the story.”

Swaroop Paresh Rawal, the actor’s wife, is one of the producers of the sequel that releases on August 11 in cinemas.