This is why Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif turned down 'Namastey England'

 Remember director Vipul Shah’s 2007 hit film ‘Namastey London’ starring Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif? Well, the director planned on taking the hit couple again for its sequel-of-sorts ‘Namastey England’ but they refused to do. Watch the trailer here. 
 
In an interaction with PTI, Vipul revealed that he approached the two stars to come together again for a film but they refused citing different reasons. While Akshay had no dates free for the film, Katrina felt she wouldn’t suit the character and would not be able to justify it. He said, "Katrina could not have been an Indian desi girl. We both did speak about it. And she said this role is something that people may not accept her in. I was going to do the film with Akshay but his dates were blocked for two years so he recommended I go to another actor."
 
Vipul then took Arjun Kapoor and Parineeti Chopra on board. He said, "I met Arjun and I told him I was going to do this with Akshay but he doesn't have dates. He heard the script and agreed to do it and that's how he came into the picture. I wanted someone desi who can also look modern and who has got a certain honesty in his face. 
 
"He was the most suited boy for the part. Parineeti was already part of it when I was going to do it with Akshay," he added. 
 
‘Namastey London’, a 2007 release went on to become a hit with Akshay romancing Katrina amidst the backdrop of London. Also, the film’s music was a hit even before it released. 
 
Talking about the obvious comparisons that will crop up once the film releases, he said, "I am sure eight out of ten people will say 'Namastey London' was better, this is bad, because it's human nature, whatever is old is gold. They must've have seen 'Namastey London' so many times, have been listening to its music all these years. 
 
"And that's because you are already emotionally connected to the first one so you treat this as a lesser cousin of the original one."
 
He added, "People tell us to make sequels of 'Singh is Kinng', 'Holiday' and other films. There is a demand for it. There's no dearth of fresh ideas. Even in sequels, the story is new, just the world is similar."
 
‘Namaste England’ is scheduled to release Thursday, October 18.