Why Dharmendra turned down Sriram Raghavan's 'Agent Vinod'
What's the story
Sriram Raghavan, the acclaimed director behind films like Johnny Gaddar and Andhadhun, recently revealed that veteran actor Dharmendra had turned down a role in his 2012 film Agent Vinod. Speaking at an event organized by the Screenwriters Association (SWA), Raghavan shared that he had approached Dharmendra for the role of a RAW chief, but the actor declined.
Role rejection
Here's what Raghavan said
Raghavan said, "After Johnny Gaddar, I told him I want to work with you again, and he said, 'Yes, of course.'" "When I was doing Agent Vinod, I remember we had written a role for the head of RAW... When I met him and told him about this role, he said, 'RAW head yaar tum log wahi (you guys do that again...) it'll be India Pakistan I don't want to do it.'"
Director's perspective
'Respect his decision'
Raghavan added, "He didn't want to get involved in that...I said I respect that." "Then we didn't pursue that track at all." Meanwhile, the film was a commercial failure despite featuring a star-studded cast including Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Prem Chopra, and Adil Hussain.
Final collaboration
On working with Dharmendra in 'Ikkis'
Raghavan also spoke about his experience directing Dharmendra in his final film, Ikkis. "Dharam ji was among the first people to whom I narrated the story. He loved it unconditionally," he said. "How do I work with him? I go to him with the scene and tell him, let's see how we can do what we can do." The film, released on January 1, is a biographical drama based on the life of Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal.