2 States: Arjun Kapoor not first choice

The male lead of "2 States", played by Arjun Kapoor, was initially offered to Saif Ali Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Ranbir Kapoor.

The romatic drama, based on Chetan Bhagat's 2009 novel by the same name, features Arjun and Alia Bhatt in the lead roles.

But the "Ishaqzaade" actor was not the first choice of filmmakers. Producer Sajid Nadiadwala confessed that the three big stars of Bollywood were approached and had said yes to the film.

But it was Karan Johar, co-producer of the film, who convinced him to cast Arjun, and not any big star, as the lead.

"This book had a strange journey started with Saif green lighting it, then Shah Rukh and Ranbir Kapoor green lighting it. And then when Karan came to me and said let's make it with Arjun, I fell off the chair," Sajid said during the trailer launch of "2 States".

Initially, Sajid felt that Karan was wrong but after seeing the final product he realised that Arjun was the right choice for the film.

"And then when we started making the film, saw it stages wise and seeing the final product, I realized that Karan was right. I feel proud of Arjun and his work," he added.

The romantic drama, directed by debutant director Abhishek Varman, has already created a buzz on social networking sites with its trailer and posters.

Arjun is playing the role of Punjabi boy called Krish Malhotra, while Alia is playing a Tamil girl called Ananya Swaminathan.