Ranbir
Kapoor
is
very
picky
about
his
screen
mothers
and
that"s
because
he
has
very
high
standards
at
home.
Hence,
he
had
said
some
time
ago,
“My
mom
was
and
is
a
fabulous
actress.
But
the
person
that
I
see
on
screen
is
not
my
mother.
I
see
them
as
two
different
entities.
I
can"t
see
my
mom
playing
my
mother."
At
the
same
time,
Ranbir
is
extremely
particular
about
who
plays
his
mom
on
screen.
In
Raajneeti,
the
choice
was
narrowed
down
even
further
since
Prakash
Jha
wanted
the
actress
playing
Ranbir"s
mother
to
resemble
him
physically.
After
considering
several
unusual
actresses
for
the
part
of
his
mother,
including
Raveena
Tandon
(who
thought
she
wasn"t
old
enough
to
play
Ranbir"s
mother)
and
Mrinal
Kulkarni,
director
Jha
zeroed
in
on
a
completely
new
30-year
old
aspiring
actress
named
Nikhila
Tirkha.
Totally
new
to
acting,
Nikhila
was
chosen
for
her
facial
resemblance
to
her
screen-son
Ranbir.
Says
Parkash
Jha,
“I
was
very
clear
that
the
facial
resemblance
has
to
be
very
strong.
I
wanted
Ranbir,
Arjun
Rampal
to
look
like
brothers,
which
they
do,
and
I
wanted
the
actress
playing
Ranbir"s
mother
to
look
like
him."
Ranbir
apparently
gave
his
nod
the
minute
he
saw
the
unknown
actress,
who
has
to
play
a
very
young
woman
required
to
take
over
a
political
dynasty
and
later,
her
US-
based
son
Ranbir"s
mother
in
this
dynastic
saga.
Known
to
work
with
seasoned
and
saleable
actresses
how
did
Jha
surrender
such
a
complex
role
to
an
inexperienced
actress?
Says
the
director,
“When
Nikhila
auditioned
for
the
part
I
instinctively
knew
she
was
right
for
the
part
although
she
has
had
no
acting
experience.
In
fact
Ranbir
who"s
much
younger
than
her
was
far
more
experienced.
But,
he
never
let
her
feel
like
a
newcomer."
Incidentally,
Ranbir
tends
to
treat
his
screen-moms
with
far
more
respect
than
he
does
his
other
co-stars.
The
unknown
Nikhila
got
more
attention
on
location
for
Raajneeti
than
Katrina
Kaif.