Reportedly, names like Shabana Azmi, Dimple Kapadia and Supriya Pathak were previously considered for the part.
Revealing details of how Tanvi bagged the very important role, a source from the "Bajirao Mastani" team revealed: "Supriyaji was out because Bhansali had already worked his magic on her talent in 'Goliyon Ki Raasleela - Ram Leela'. Getting Ranveer Singh, Deepika Padukone, Priyanka Chopra and Surpriya Pathak together again in 'Bajirao...' after '...Ram Leela' would have been too much of an instant replay."
Tanvi was seen as the best choice for the strong domineering part of Bajirao's mother.
Before being signed on, she had to go through a compatibility test with Ranveer Singh to see whether they looked like mother and son. The two hit it off from the word go.