In recent years, there’s been a growing trend of Bollywood actors foraying into South Indian cinema, and major South Indian stars venturing into Bollywood. This cross-industry collaboration has brought together some of the biggest names from both film worlds.

Rashmika Mandanna, a popular actress from the South, made her Bollywood debut with family comedy-drama Goodbye, starring alongside the legendary Amitabh Bachchan. She also shared screen space with Ranbir Kapoor in Animal. Amitabh Bachchan himself had earlier made a memorable cameo in the 2014 Telugu comedy-drama film Manam, and recently starred in the Telugu film Kalki 2898 AD alongside Prabhas, Deepika Padukone and Kamal Haasan.

Salman Khan, one of Bollywood’s biggest stars, entered the South film industry with his role in the Telugu political thriller Godfather, in which he shared the spotlight with megastar Chiranjeevi. The exchange continues to grow, with Bollywood actors like Janhvi Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan having recently making their South debut with Devara: Part 1.

However, there have been a few South Indian actors who have rejected Bollywood films in the past. Check out all the names below.

From Allu Arjun to Mahesh Babu: 7 South Indian actors who said ‘NO’ to big-budget Bollywood movies

1. Allu Arjun – Bajrangi Bhaijaan

Bajrangi Bhaijaan is one of Indian cinema’s biggest films. According to IMDb, it’s the ninth highest-grossing Indian movie of all time with a worldwide collection of over Rs 858 crore. The heartwarming storyline and Salman Khan‘s portrayal of Pawan, a man determined to reunite a Pakistani girl with her family, resonated deeply with audiences.

According to News18, Salman Khan wasn’t the first choice for the lead role. Director Kabir Khan had initially approached Allu Arjun to play the lead role, but the Pushpa actor had turned it down. He then reached out to another South Indian superstar, Rajnikanth, who also declined the offer due to unknown reasons.

2. Anushka Shetty – Singham