Anil Kapoor apparently replaced the actor in 'Battle of Bittora' after acquiring the rights to the film now starring Sonam Kapoor and Fawad Khan

The industry grapevine has been buzzing with stories about how Saif Ali Khan was replaced in the cinematic adaptation of bestseller Battle of Bittora after Anil Kapoor's home production acquired the movie rights.

A source says, "When Anil contacted author Anuja Chauhan with the proposal to turn her book into a film, he was redirected to the production company which had bought the rights much earlier.

Their original choice was Saif and the actor, too, was quite keen to do the film. He had liked the script a lot."

However, after a round of negotiations with the company, Anil apparently paid a whopping amount to buy the film rights. "Once he took over, it was announced that his daughter Sonam will play the lead.

Later, he signed Fawad Khan instead of continuing with Saif who was already on board," adds the source. Anil and Saif were not available for comment.