EXCLUSIVE: Not Varun Dhawan but Irrfan Khan was in Sriram Raghavan's mind for Badlapur; here's how VD came on board

Sriram Raghavan created the action thriller film Badlapur with Varun Dhawan in 2015. While the film was a box office success, the performance of the young actor was also appreciated by fans. But did you know VD was not the first choice of the filmmaker for the role? In an exclusive chat with Pinkvilla, the director revealed he had Irrfan Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in mind even while writing. Read on!

Sriram Raghavan was in a candid conversation with Pinkvilla, talking about his film career. During the interview, the director revealed how he ended up casting Varun Dhawan for a serious role in Badlapur. Raghavan started by crediting producer Dinesh Vijan for it. He then went on to narrate how things fell into place and Varun got cast for the lead role.

The Ek Hasina Thi helmer shared with us that he had the basic subject of Badlapur with him, which he narrated to Sanjay and his brother, Shridhar Raghavan. However, both of them warned him against making the movie, stating that it’s too dark. “I was thinking of serious actors like Irrfan (Khan). They said, 'Don’t do it'," the filmmaker shared.

Watch the entire interview below:

The filmmaker went on to add that a week later, he met Dinesh and told him the story of Badlapur. The producer told him to go ahead with the film only if he promised not to dilute the story. When Vijan asked him which actor he had in mind for the film, Raghavan stated that Saif Ali Khan would not do it because their film, Agent Vinod, didn’t work. Otherwise, he would have thought of him also.

This is when the Sky Force producer suggested he cast someone much younger, like Varun Dhawan. Even though the Johnny Gaddaar maker didn’t think of VD for the role, he realized that his brother Shridhar got married at the age of 21. So, he felt that it was possible for young people to go through romance and a tragedy. “So, I thought it’s not a bad idea,” he expressed.

Then, a strange coincidence happened. On the day when Raghavan was visiting Dinesh, Varun had called the producer. This is when both of them decided to meet with the Bhediya actor and narrate to him the story of the 2015 thriller.

“Varun also vibed with that story, then he asked me, ‘Do you think I can do it?’ I told him, ‘If you like it, you can do it.’ So, that’s how it happened immediately. Then Nawaz (Nawazuddin Siddiqui), in my mind, even while writing,” revealed Sriram Raghavan.

For more updates, stay tuned to Pinkvilla!

ALSO READ: EXCLUSIVE: When Sriram Raghavan wrote his version of Baazigar only to learn that it was already being made, deets inside