Salman Khan's Dabangg 3 will be prequel to first installment: Arbaaz Khan

Mumbai: Arbaaz Khan had turned director for Salman Khan-starrer 'Dabangg 2', but with its third part in the offering, he has taken a backseat from direction primarily due to issues in his personal life.

The 2012 blockbuster film was the second installment in the series and with 'Dabangg 3', Arbaaz has handed over the reins to Prabhudeva.

In an interview with PTI, Arbaaz said, "I wanted the franchise to have a fresh feel to it. I did it with 'Dabangg 2'. At this point, I felt a lot of things were happening in my life (referring to his separation from wife Malaika Arora), and that time there was only discussion about 'Dabangg 2'.

"Directing, producing and acting is a big responsibility. You need to be in a good state of mind and not have things going on at the back of your mind. I felt it was not the right time to (direct) do it, maybe later, I will do it."

When asked if his personal life has an influence on his professional life, Arbaaz said, "No. Not really. When you are making a film of that magnitude, you need to be focused and interested and in a (good) state of mind. I was focusing on other aspects of my life, I felt direction could take a back seat."

But at the same time, Arbaaz believes had he directed the third part in the popular franchise, he would have done a better job today.

"I do not regret the decision... Hopefully, next time or if something else comes up (for direction)... we'll see," he added.

Arbaaz also insisted that in case of 'Dabangg 3', which will be a prequel, irrespective of who directs the project, "both Salman and me will be involved in the nitty-gritty of the film."

The first two parts of 'Dabangg' had veteran actor Vinod Khanna essaying the role of Salman and Arbaaz's father in the film, who passed away this year.

Talking about Khanna, Arbaaz said, "We will miss his presence, but we will find a way. But the script also moves in a way (referring to change in storyline) and also we are coming after a big gap. We have the liberty to make changes or adjustments to the story as there is a time gap. It is unfortunate he is not with us."

If there is a prequel being made, the makers would get somebody in Khanna's place, he said, adding, "We need the character to be there. We need to do a screen test."

The actor said the team has locked the one-liner idea for 'Dabangg 3', and are now developing the screenplay.

"This time, we will have some resemblance to the first one (film)... It should feel it is coming from the same stock. We are new to prequels, but this is the way to move forward.

"But it is not a complete prequel, there is a portion of it. It is not that the full film is a prequel, the film will move back in time," he said.

Arbaaz said the film will be about how Salman's character was born, how he came into existence, what brought him into this scenario and how he turned into Chulbul Pandey.

The film will go on floors by mid-next year and is expected to be released in early 2019.