While fans are eagerly waiting for Ranbir Kapoor’s big-screen transformation into Lord Ram in Nitesh Tiwari’s upcoming Ramayan few know that Bollywood’s original “Bhaijaan” was once meant to step into those very divine shoes. Back in the 1990s Sohail Khan had envisioned a grand cinematic take on the Ramayan casting his superstar brother Salman Khan as Ram and Sonali Bendre as Sita. The film had even started shooting and about 40% of it was already completed. What went wrong with this ambitious project? As per a report by Mid-Day things were running smoothly until personal dynamics started interfering with professional plans. Actress and producer Pooja Bhatt joined the project midway. That’s when the buzz began rumours of a relationship between Sohail Khan and Pooja Bhatt started making the rounds. This didn’t sit well with Salim Khan the head of the Khan family. According to reports he disapproved of their growing closeness and advised Sohail to end the relationship. Did Pooja Bhatt walk out? Despite Salman Khan trying to manage the situation calmly Pooja Bhatt eventually exited the film due to what seemed like emotional fallout and discomfort with the family’s stance. Her exit marked the beginning of the end. Without her the film lost momentum and was quietly shelved—never to be completed. The forgotten Ramayan before Ranbir Kapoor’s Interestingly this untitled film was being planned decades before today’s multi-part Ramayan backed by Nitesh Tiwari. The upcoming version is scheduled to be released in two parts Part 1 during Diwali 2025 and Part 2 during Diwali 2026 with Sai Pallavi as Sita. But had things gone as planned in the 90s Salman Khan might’ve already been immortalised as Lord Ram in Indian cinema long before Ranbir picked up the bow and arrow.