Sriram Raghavan reveals why Varun Dhawan was replaced by Agastya Nanda in Ekkis

It was before the Covid pandemic that director Sriram Raghavan had announced his reunion with Badlapur actor Varun Dhawan in Ekkis. The biographical war drama was supposed to be their second collaboration. However, things didn’t work out and the film had a casting changed where Varun Dhawan was replaced by Agastya Nanda. Now, the filmmaker has revealed the reason behind the same.

Sriram Raghavan on why Varun Dhawan was replaced by Agastya Nanda

Ekkis is based on the life of Arun Khetarpal, the youngest recipient of the Param Vir Chakra. He received the honour posthumously for his valour in the Battle Of Basantar during the 1971 Indo-Pak War, where he was martyred at the mere age of 21. While the film was initially announced with Varun in lead, the makers announced the casting change in 2022. Now, Agastya is taking the film ahead with Dharmendra.

Sharing the reason behind it, Sriram told PTI, “Initially, it had Varun Dhawan, and then after the pandemic, we had a chat about how he won’t suit (the part).” He also added that Agastya is undergoing training currently and will start shooting in February 2024.

Sriram promised that the film will not be a fictionlised version of Arun Khetarpal’s life. He insisted that it will be neither simplistic nor overly heroic. It won’t focus on his childhood but on the young officer who was martyred shortly after turning 21. Ekkis will also take into account an interesting event that occured 30 years post that. He said, “It is a bigger production; there will be tank battles and all those things that happen in a war film. But it is also a human story; it’s a drama, a coming-of-age kind of a thing”

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On Dharmendra’s role…

The filmmaker also commented on Dharmendra’s role in the film. He plays Arun’s father and the film marks the actor-director reunion after Johnny Gaddar. Sriram shared, “It is wonderful. We have shot a bit of the film. He is playing Arun’s father. When Arun died at the age of 21, his father was 51 years old or so, and in the year 2000, his father was in his early 80s.”

Ekkis will mark Agastya’s big screen debut. It is slated to release theatrically on January 10, 2025. Amitabh Bachchan’s grandson Agastya made his acting debut with Zoya Akhtar’s The Archies in December 2023. The film also starred Suhana Khan, Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina amongst others.

Also Read: Agastya Nanda to start shooting for his big screen debut Ekkis in January, deets inside