Ajay Devgn in Rajkumar Santoshi's The Legend of Bhagat Singh.

There was a time in the 90s when every actor had a defined image that dictated their film choices.

Shah Rukh Khan was the ,Akshay Kumar was the action hero who could throw kicks and punches on command, Aamir Khan was already the perfectionistand Ajay Devgn was known for his brooding, intense look. Fans of Ajay Devgn believed that his silence spoke more than his dialogues, and dancing in college-based movies was probably not meant for him. So when an actor like him, who was known to hold the gaze of his audience, got the most verbose role of his life, he had a challenge on his hands -- to play Bhagat Singh in Rajkumar Santoshi's The Legend of Bhagat Singh in 2002.

Ajay was 33 at the time and believed he would be a misfit in the role of 23-year-old martyr. In fact, when Rajkumar was first casting the film, he went to Aamir Khan who rejected the role because he believed he was too old to play Bhagat Singh in the period drama. By then, Aamir and Rajkumar had already worked together in Andaz Apna Apna. "I was already turning 40 at the time, it wouldn't have looked good. That quality of a young guy saying such things won't come to me. I told Rajkumar Santoshi to cast some young boy in his early twenties. That is Bhagat Singh. That's why I didn't do it," Aamir shared on The Great Indian Kapil Show.

At one point, Santoshi considered casting a newcomer but Ajay was locked in the role after he gave a screen test, which was quite unusual for a mainstream star in Hindi cinema. In the making of the film shared on YouTube, Santoshi shared, "When I was making Lajja, I interacted a lot with Ajay. His eyes and intensity matched what is required for the character of Bhagat Singh. We auditioned him in full get-up with a moustache and turban and I was pleasantly surprised that his face and his whole appearance was quite similar to Bhagat Singh."

 Akhilendra Mishra and Ajay Devgn in The Legend of Bhagat Singh.

Ajay was scared of being miscast. Even more so because the film was being made amid a lot of controversy. At the time, four filmmakers were making films based on Bhagat Singh's life and Santoshi's film was in direct competition with Bobby Deol-starrer 23rd March 1931: Shaheed. There were rumours that Santoshi was previously associated with the project but wanted Sunny to play the title role. When things didn't work out, he left the project and set up his own film with the Tauranis. This led to a rift between Sunny and Rajkumar who had delivered many hits like Ghayal, Ghatak, Damini until then. Nevertheless, once Ajay stepped into the project, he knew he had to live up to the expectations that were once set by Manoj Kumar in 1965's Shaheed.

Ajay had to be a revolutionary who is fearless, brave and does not care for consequences. He had to deliver monologues that made the audience believe that someone as selfless as Bhagat lived and died for the country, and he also had to play him like a 23-year-old who cared deeply for his friends who had the same mission. He had to present Bhagat like an ordinary man who had an extraordinary impact on the freedom movement. One of the most powerful scenes in the film, where Bhagat and his comrades are being force fed in the prison, brought out the humane, sensitive side of the character. And the scenes where Bhagat is enthusiastically motivating his fellow freedom fighters brought out his never-say-die attitude.

In an interview during the promotions of the film, Ajay spoke about meeting Bhagat Singh's brother Kultar Singh. In a chat with Rediff in 2002, Ajay shared that he was in tears when Kultar addressed him as his older brother. "You know, in Pune, someone told Kultar Singh that he should bless me. Kultar replied, 'How can I bless my elder brother?' I could not help crying," he shared and added, "He gave us deep insights into his brother's life, facts that have not been revealed by history." Kultar passed away at 86 in 2004. Kultar was a vocal supporter of the film as he found Santoshi's research to be respectful and said that it was as close to Bhagat's real-life as possible.