MUMBAI: Shah Rukh Khan has turned down the role of the Olympian gold medalist hockey champ Dhyan Chand. Apparently the Bollywood superstar opted out due to his inability to put in the rigorous hours required on the field to prepare for the part.

While the film’s team maintains a tightlipped silence over SRK’s quiet exeunt from the project, a member of the core crew blurted out, “We met Shah Rukh because we thought he had developed a passion for hockey while shooting for ‘Chak De’. But he didn’t commit to the hard hours required on the field. Shah Rukh was quite disinclined towards the rigorous prep work required for playing Dhyan Chand. We assured him we would manage the schedules in such a way that he wouldn’t have to let any of his other projects and commitments suffer. But he was adamant.”

Disillusioned by this turn of events the core member of the film’s unit said, “I wonder if he thought he could play Dhyan Chand without any preparation! Frankly we’re disappointed. We expected Shah Rukh to whip up the same enthusiasm and energy for the role that Farhan Akhtar has brought to Milkha Singh. Now we’ve no option but to go back to the casting board and get someone who would be able to commit himself fully to bringing Dhyan Chand alive on screen.”

We hear Ranbir Kapoor is now the project’s most coveted option. “If not Ranbir, we may sign a newcomer who would be able to surrender to the director Rohit Vaid’s vision completely,” says the source.