Daniel Craig Auditioned For Rang De Basanti, Director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra Reveals. But Then...

"I remember vividly that one of the people who auditioned for the part of the young jailor who walks Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev to be hanged, was none other than current James Bond, Daniel Craig," recalls Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra

Daniel Craig had auditioned for the role of the British jailor who walks freedom fighters Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev to be hanged in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Rang De Basanti but eventually could not feature in the film as he was being also considered to be the next James Bond that time. Mehra, previously an ad filmmaker, says he wanted to create world cinema and wanted the backend to be managed with perfection and discipline. He was able to rope in David Reid and Adam Bowling, who had two cult classics behind them as executive producers - Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and Snatch (2000). The London-based duo loved the script of Rang De Basanti, gave up their homes on rent and shifted to India to set up the film, says Mehra. "They were responsible for casting Alice Patten and Steven Mackintosh for the parts of Sue and James McKinley, respectively. "I remember vividly that one of the people who auditioned for the part of James McKinley, the young jailor who walks Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev to be hanged, was none other than current James Bond, Daniel Craig," recalls Mehra in his autobiography The Stranger in the Mirror. Craig came through David and Adam.