Madhur Bhandarkar 'not replacing Aishwarya Rai in Heroine'

Madhur Bhandarkar has dismissed rumours that he has been approaching other actresses to replace Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in his stalled project Heroine.

The director was forced to put the project on hold indefinitely after it was revealed that Rai Bachchan was three months pregnant in June.

Bhandarkar told followers on Twitter: "Speculations in the media of me approaching for my film HEROINE are totally baseless!!!

"Whether I will revive film HEROINE, will decide after consultations with UTV or a fresh film, will surely update u in near future!!!"

Bhandarkar recently implied that the former Miss World had hidden her pregnancy from the media and that she had violated his trust.

However, Rai Bachchan's father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan spoke out in her defence and said that "everyone" had known she was married when she was cast in the film.

Heroine, about a Bollywood superstar, is thought to have been inspired by the colourful lives of actresses such as Marilyn Monroe and Elizabeth Taylor.