What happened to Pakistani star Jawed Sheikh in "Dus"? Hadn't he joined the vast cast in Calgary, Canada, for what was described as a very special role?

"Yes he had," confirms director Anubhav Sinha. "We were very excited to have him. He's a big star in Pakistan. And he would have certainly added inches to the film's stature. Jawed did join us, and did shoot with us."

So then what happened to his role? Sheikh isn't visible in "Dus" even in passing. Sinha pulls out a shocker: "After I had nearly wrapped up my 65-day schedule I came to know that the raw stock was damaged.

"I still remember it was the last day of shooting when I got a call from back home asking me to stop shooting with the raw-stock in use...But it was too late. When we checked out the footage, we found quite a bit of it to be fogged. Jawed Sheikh's role had suffered the most. Instead of rescuing his portions in bits and pieces I decided to do away with his role entirely. He's too big a star in Pakistan to be seen in a minuscule role. His fans would have taken offence. But it's a pity that it didn't happen."

It looks like Pakistani actors are not fated to make an impact in Bollywood.

Last year Muammar Rana had tried his luck in Shashi Ranjan's "Dobara". This year there was Meera making her doomed debut in "Nazar" amidst a maelstrom of murky controversies.

Says Sinha: "Though I'd love to work with artistes in Pakistan I see no dearth of talent in Bollywood. To my good fortune, I've worked with some of the best talents in 'Dus'. I feel very lucky.

"After my last film 'Aapko Pehle Bhi Kahin Dekha Hai' I could have been wiped out of Bollywood's map. In fact I was supposed to make the film with four newcomers for T-Series and Bhushan Kumar. But the project was taken over by Sanjay Dutt and then Nitin Manmohan. Before I knew it, it became larger than life."

There were constant stories coming back from Calgary of the big stars' dates going to waste. Sinha is nonchalant. "Yeah, for the 15 days that Sanjay Dutt gave us he had to sit idle for eight days. And Abhishek Bachchan had to be idle for 10 days in Calgary. So what? These things happen. It was a huge film with a mind-numbing canvas. I still can't believe I pulled it off. But believe me I've gone through hell making 'Dus'."

Fortunately the slick flick has pulled through, thanks to the build-up by "Dus bahane kar ke le gayi dil".

Sinha smiles: "Do you know it was an afterthought? My music directors, Vishal-Shekhar, suggested a hip-hop tune for the promos. Fortunately, my producer liked it. And we were on. I realise the song changed the profile of the publicity. But it got the audience in. And in spite of the flak, the film got a much better initial than many other big guns. I can't complain."

Sinha is now ready with his new film "Tathastu" with Sanjay and Amisha Patel. "But my final destination is the Kodak Theatre. That's where the Oscar ceremony takes place every year!"