Urvashi Rautela reveals she turned down Ishaqzaade for Miss Universe pageant: 'I never spoke to Parineeti Chopra about this'

Urvashi Rautela recently made a shocking revelation about her early days in the industry. She revealed that she was offered a lead role in Yash Raj Films' 2012 romantic drama Ishaqzaade, which marked the screen debut of actors Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra. But Urvashi had to let go of the opportunity to focus on preparing for Miss Universe and pursue her dream of becoming a beauty pageant winner.
The model-turned-actress, who was crowned Miss Diva - Miss Universe India in 2015 and represented India at Miss Universe the same year, stressed that her passion for pageantry was always her top priority.
"I had to let go off a Yash Raj Films movie because I wanted to go for Miss Universe. It was Ishaqzaade, which was supposed to be my launch. But this (pageantry) was my focus since childhood and I really wanted to prepare for it. Some people have a different way of thinking, that after they win it, Bollywood becomes their main focus. But in my case, it was never like that. I never spoke to Parineeti about this, but it is good, everyone has different destinies. I wanted to be a pageant winner more than a heroine, this (Bollywood) followed automatically," Urvashi said in an interview with Hauterrfly.

She also compared preparing for beauty pageants to an athlete preparing for the Olympics, emphasizing the need to control one's diet, exercise regularly, and perfect various walks and poses.

Urvashi made her Bollywood debut with Sunny Deol starrer Singh Saab the Great in 2012 and has since appeared in films like Sanam Re, Hate Story 4, and Great Grand Masti. She is set to be seen in the upcoming comedy Welcome to the Jungle, headlined by Akshay Kumar.