Yes, folks. It was inevitable. After the thumping success of their scorching chemistry in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s mammoth 2013 hit Goliyon Ki Raas Leela- Ramleela, the Ranveer Singh–Deepika Padukone pairing was obviously going to be the next big thing in Bollywood.

The casting for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani, incidentally, has also been the talk of the town for quite some time now. What with Bhansali planning to release his ambitious directorial on the same day as arch rival Karan Johar’s Shuddhi, speculation regarding the casting for both films has been at its zenith.

Ranveer Singh, who was being considered to star in both big projects, made his choice clear by picking his mentor Bhansali, over Johar. And now, it seems like his reel and alleged real-life girlfriend Deepika Padukone has followed in his footsteps, by giving the nod to play Mastani, in Bhansali’s epic love story.

Said a source close to Bhansali, confirming the news of Deepika coming on board to play the female lead: “Deepika is looking forward to shooting with Bhansali and Ranveer again. Her last stint with the duo (Ram-Leela) got her plenty of accolades that she will not forget in a long time.”

It has also been learnt that the leggy lass has alloted the bulk of her dates for next year to Sanjay, since the director likes to have long schedules. Bajirao Mastani is pitted against Shuddhi, and both films are vying for a December, 2015 release.

It remains to be seen who will now step into Deepika Padukone’s shoes for Karan Johar’s Shuddhi, which seems to be jinxed as far as the casting department is concerned. This has been the umpteenth time an actor has opted out of the film, due to date clashes and other issues.