Akshaye Khanna received strong appreciation for his role as Rehman Dakait in Dhurandhar. Even though his character did not appear in Dhurandhar The Revenge, his performance in the first film left a lasting impression on viewers. However, casting this role was not easy. Casting director Mukesh Chhabra recently shared that several actors turned down the part before Akshaye Khanna was finalised.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Chhabra explained that many actors were hesitant because the film had an ensemble cast. Some did not want to be part of a project where multiple characters shared screen space, even though they were suitable for the role.
“We were discussing so many actor’s names for the film, but the actors kept saying no, because they didn’t want to be part of an ensemble film,” he said.
Interestingly, Chhabra revealed that some of these actors later regretted their decision and reached out to him after the film’s success.
Akshaye Khanna’s name came up later in the casting process. When Chhabra first contacted him, the actor was unsure about the offer. However, the casting director convinced him to at least listen to the story. That meeting turned out to be crucial.
“Akshaye Khanna’s name came towards the end. Akshaye has this capacity give him anything and he will surprise you. When I first called him, he said, “Are you mad?” But I told him to just come at least and hear the story. He came and after the narration, looked at me and said, “Fantastic!” in that typical way of his. Within the day he called and confirmed he’s doing the film. It was that quick,” Mukesh Chhabra said.
Chhabra also spoke about casting R Madhavan in the film. According to him, the process was simple because of their long association. He had known Madhavan since the time they worked around Rang De Basanti.
He explained that when director Aditya Dhar met Madhavan, things moved quickly. The actor agreed to the role almost immediately, even though he was busy shooting for De De Pyaar De 2 at the time.
“Aditya [Dhar] went to the studio to meet him, and he called me within an hour, and said he is fantastic a great actor. Madhavan, too, immediately said yes. He brought an authority to his performance. There is no action. He speaks calmly, and never loses his control,” he said.
The casting process shows how some roles take time to find the right actor, but once they do, they can leave a strong impact on the final film.