5 actors who can play the female lead in 'Don 3'

From Deepika to Samantha, this list is already turning up the heat

KARACHI:

Things have become rather heated and interesting in the best possible way now that the news of Ranveer Singh stepping in as the new Don has been confirmed. A polarising decision that has half the audience excited and the other half seething with rage due to the admittedly irreplaceable nature of Shah Rukh Khan, one can't help but look forward to the third instalment to see how things will shake out.

Amidst all this, talks of another replacement are in the works. Wild cat (not the High School Musical kind) Priyanka Chopra is most likely not going to reprise her role as the revenge-seeking antithesis of Don. While rumours are afloat regarding Kiara Advani stepping in to work her magic, it's fun to imagine a world where any of the following female leads take up the role.

Deepika Padukone

We've seen her in the irresistibly enigmatic spy role in Pathaan and we know, for a fact, that she killed it with her action sequences in the film. (She knows it, too.) Let's not forget that Deepika also went to Hollywood and did an action film with Vin Diesel (xXx: Return of Xander Cage) and held her own amongst several giants.

Add to that the fact that she and her husband Ranveer basically redefined chemistry with Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela and we have a winning combination. 

Alia Bhatt

While Raazi gave us a taste of her spy avatar, and the Heart of Stone trailer has shown audiences her potential as an antagonist, Don 3 could be the best of both worlds for Alia. A chameleon when it comes to acting, there is very little that Alia cannot do. She can be assertive and weave magic on-screen, even when she's holding up the entire narrative on her shoulders, as we've seen with Gangubai Kathiawadi. 

But that's not the case here. The equally magnetic Ranveer would be sharing screen space with her. That, in itself, is great, given that her chemistry with Ranveer is palpable, as evidenced by Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. With this superstar taking up the role, we might have ourselves a rather deadly duo, prepared to stun as we've never seen them before.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Okay, hear me out. A lot of us haven't fully recovered from when Ash blew our minds as Sunehri in Dhoom 2. She's matured a lot since then, but that didn't stop her from blowing our minds as Ranbir Kapoor's character's lover in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil.

Now, let's just boink Ranbir out of the image and add in Ranveer. Then, let's amp things up a bit and imagine an intense love-hate relationship between Aishwarya and him - brimming with tension, but also masked by complex layers of hatred. Need I say more?

Katrina Kaif

The lovable yet commanding Katrina has proven her mettle time and again in action films. Whether she's doing all she can in a yawn-inducing narrative like Phantom, or romancing and bamboozling Salman Khan in the Tiger franchise, Kat can and does hold her own. Add to that a ridiculously toned physique and a screen presence that has drastically improved over the years - you can't go wrong with casting her. 

It's also worth noting that we're yet to see Ranveer and Katrina work together on the silver screen. Furthermore, from a PR perspective, Deepika's husband working with her ex's ex is a story that would drive the press wild, basically leading to organic hype. Come on, Farhan Akhtar. Go big or go home, no?

Samantha Ruth Prabhu

Every now and then, you need to mix things up. While any of the usual suspects, like those mentioned above, would be absolutely phenomenal when it comes to the role, only Samantha can truly embody the junglee billi (wild cat) energy that the task at hand needs. A sensual, smart, and skilled actor who is already in the Indian counterpart of Citadel (the international version of which starred Priyanka), the actor would have no trouble filling the challenging void left behind by PeeCee. 

Add to that the fact that her inevitable chemistry with Ranveer is basically untapped potential (he doesn't even need to do anything, she could romance a rock and make it look great), and we may just have ourselves a winner. 

It's never easy to see another actor fill the shoes of a beloved character. After all, not seeing SRK and Priyanka give us that extra oomph we loved in the Don series may as well be a setback and tragedy of gigantic proportions. However, things change, and the show must go on.

Let's just hope that it goes on with an equally killer combo that does for Don 3 what SRK did for the Don series after taking over the coveted role from the inimitable Amitabh Bachchan.

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