Abhishek Bachchan dropped from 'Businessman'

Director Puri Jagannath has dropped Abhishek Bachchan from his upcoming film.

The Hindi remake of the Telugu release Businessman was expected to feature Bachchan in the lead role, reports Mumbai Mirror.

Confirming the casting change, Jagannath said: "After looking at Abhishek's recent track record, we realised it won't be in favour of the film. He doesn't have enough fire that the movie demands."

In spite of some language issues, the filmmaker now plans to retain the movie's lead actor from the Telugu version.

"I want to cast Mahesh Babu in the Hindi remake now. Though Mahesh is not too fluent with Hindi, it shouldn't be a problem considering his increasing popularity."

Although some of Bachchan's recent releases have under-performed at the box office, the star earlier told Digital Spy that he is not content unless he is acting.

"A film requires on average three months of shooting, and I would go completely nutty if I had to stay at home for nine months doing nothing. I like to work and I enjoy acting and being on a film set," said Bachchan.

The actor's next film, the ensemble project Players, releases on Friday.