This is a silly silly post. But it’s cold, and work is INSANE today. Let’s talk about all the movies where we really wish Juhi could have been the lead actress instead of the lead actress we actually got. Or at least would enjoy seeing her version as an alternative.
Jab Harry Met Sejal
The more I think about it, the more this feels like a perfect Juhi-Shahrukh movie. She’s perky and chirpy with a core of strength and wisdom, he is passionate and troubled. Her lightness and his darkness come together into a beautiful mixture. Of course, they are the wrong ages. But if this movie was made 20 years ago, it would have been perfect. Or if Sejal was slightly rewritten to be a spinster, or a widow.
Chalte Chalte
Rumor has it that this film was originally supposed to belong to Juhi. She could certainly have handled the softly sad later sections. But could she have managed the sexy and confident early bits? At least, better than Rani did?
Raja Hindustani
This one really intrigues me! Karisma, even in the “happy” early sections, had this core of melancholy within her which made us understand why the character would turn her back one everything for a chance at love. On the other hand, Juhi would sell more easily the idea of this charming happy daughter that her father just wants to spoil and keep bright and happy for ever, and who immediately intrigues Aamir.
Talaash
Rani is so earthy and sexy in this. But on the other hand, seeing Juhi with the light turned off inside of her is about the saddest thing you can see, if she was playing that role it would have been so much more powerful. Maybe too powerful? Would we care about Aamir’s whole thing if Juhi was sad?
Bucket List
Absolutely she would have been better in this. Madhuri is good at many things, but not at comedy. If you want a bright happy middle-aged housewife who keeps everything running smoothly and then starts breaking free and rediscovering herself in a comic way, you want Juhi.
Andhadhun
It would have been a completely different performance from Tabu and a completely different meaning, but I think it would have been AMAZING!!! This woman who seems so simple and sweet, and is secretly fulfilling her sexual needs, passionate, and a bit of a sociopath. Not to mention it would explain why our hero is so sure that no one will believe him, because who could believe bad things of Juhi?
Dangal
The movie was a bit unbalanced in that the focus was on the Aamir relationship with his daughters, not on him and his wife or his wife and her relationship with her children. If Juhi played his wife, that couldn’t have happened. We would have had a sense of how they all interact, parent to parent, mother to daughter, daughter to mother, and so on.
Dil To Pagal Hai
Can we all agree that Madhuri and Shahrukh have HORRIBLE chemistry in this movie? Now, picture replace Madhuri with Juhi. It kind of works, right? She is sweet and a little naive, but so charming that everyone immediately likes her. She does a funny imitation of Shahrukh and teases him and is happy, and eventually he lets go of his dark thoughts and racing mind and falls in love with her brightness. And then she has to pretend to be happy with Akshay and all our hearts break seeing her pretend to smile.
Jab Tak Hain Jaan
This is obvious, right? If Shahrukh and Juhi are the young couple, than we will actually be rooting for them, and we will be there and supportive of every dumb decision Juhi makes, and we will be totally fine with Anushka being dumped.
What do you think?
Which of these recastings most excites you?
Which doesn’t work?
What other movie would you like to add to this list?
dontcallitbollywood 
Pretty much every movie that has Priyanka in it, which I’ve liked, I would rather see Juhi in. So both Dons, and her older age would have been fine, she was revenging her brother after all. And Dil Dhadakne Do, which is one of my all time favorite movies, talking dog and all. Priyanka was good in that movie, but move some of the plot points around, and Juhi would have been even better. The first movie I saw Priyanka in was Krrish, and I thought she was horrible, and I thought the movie was terrible, and ever since then I haven’t liked her face. That was before I was an SRK fan, and before I ever heard any of the rumors. And Priyanka isn’t the only actress I prefer not to see, I also dislike Kareena (I first saw her in K3G – liked the movie, hated her). However I don’t think Juhi would do well in Kareena roles, but there is something about the roles Priyanka picks, I think Juhi would excel in them.
And even though I dislike the SRK / Madhuri pairing, I think Juhi would have been great in Dil To Pagel Hai in Karisma’s role. You can really believe that Juhi and SRK are friends, and it would have been clear the pain that his falling for someone else would cause. I know Juhi refused the role. SHe would have changed the movie, but it would have been something to watch. Madhuri had better chemistry with Akshay too…
But I really don’t want to screw with JHMS. I really appreciated how Anushka’s humor was NOT like Juhi’s.
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Really interesting thought about PC versus Juhi! They were even both Miss Indias. But I agree, somehow it seems like PC got slotted into the “spunky sparkling average girl” roles over and over that Juhi could do well. Oh! Can you imagine Juhi in Dostana?
If Juhi were in DTPH, then I really wouldn’t want SRK and Madhuri to end up together. But the dance offs and rivalry would have been even higher.
On Thu, Nov 14, 2019 at 3:47 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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Please no Juhi in JHMS…Anushka was perfect.
I would have liked Juhi in Chaahat (instead of Pooja Bhatt)…but not in one of those others with ShahRukh you suggested…and not in Taalash either.
I would like Juhi in one of your mature fan-fiction with ShahRukh (there are several you wrote with both in mind).
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Oh, Juhi in Chaahat is a really great idea! A similar chemistry to what they had in Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman and Ram Jaane so we could really believe they were in love at first sight.
On Fri, Nov 15, 2019 at 12:09 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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