This has had one or two interesting twists to the tale. Deepika was to be seen in Rana; however, she will be replaced by Katrina. Katrina was offered Kochadaiyaan, but Deepika has stepped in her shoes, because the former could not give her call sheets to Soundarya Rajinikanth. In retrospect, nobody has lost anything; it is a case of mere role reversals. Rajini, for one, will act with two top Bollywood actresses in succession.

It was none other than Soundarya R Ashwin, the director of 'Kochadaiyaan', who confirmed the presence of Katrina Kaif in her dream film starring her Superstar dad. But last minute changes ensured that Katrina missed the bus and Deepika boarded into it.

"Soundarya narrated the storyline to Katrina and she was very much interested to make her debut in Tamil with Kochadaiyaan. But she could not adjust her dates following which the plum offer landed on Deepika's lap", sources say.

Deepika was roped in to share the screen space with Rajini in 'Rana' and the actress attended the movie's launch function in Chennai April last. But the project hit a roadblock after the Superstar fell ill and hospitalized.

And now, the word in Kollywood is that Katrina Kaif would star opposite Rajini in 'Rana', which is set to take off soon after he completes shooting for 'Kochadaiyaan'. "By that time, Katrina would free herself from other commitments," add sources.