The endless will-he-won't-he speculation on Nawazuddin Siddiqui's presence in Rahul Dholakia's Raees can finally be put to permanent rest with the harried actor rubbishing the reports.

Says the exasperated actor, `I am at a loss to understand where these reports came from! I was never offered Raees. So the question of accepting or not accepting the film doesn't arise. Someone in the media decided I was part of the film. Then they decided I wasn't going to be part of it. All this drama is very distracting and embarrassing.`

Nawaz says he shares a terrific rapport with the Raees producer Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani. `I did Talaash with them.And I was very happy with the outcome.I share a great relationship with them.I'd love to work with them again.In fact Excel(Farhan and Sidhwani'a production company) did offer me another film which I couldn't do because of date problems. But Raees never came to me.`


The role in Raees apparently requires the actor to put on 20 kilos. `Even if I ate chocolates, sweets and pizzas round-the-clock my metabolism won't allow me to put on that kind weight. So there is no question of doing the role.`

Nawaz now gears up to plunge into Sajid Nadiadwala's Kick. `I've a fabulous role in the film. Plus, I've some really exciting scenes with Salman Khan. Kick is my most commercial project to date. It's the kind of action films I used to watch and enjoy as a child.I never knew I'd actually be a part of one of those.`