Aksar 2: Ananth Mahadevan shares interesting anecdotes on casting the leads

Zareen Khan, Gautam Rode and Abhinav Shukla-starrer ‘Aksar 2’ is all set to release next week. This will be the first time when the three will share screen space in this suspense drama, teaming up with filmmaker Ananth Mahadevan. The chemistry of the leads is evidently fantastic as seen in the two trailers of the film. In an exclusive chat with us, director Ananth Mahadevan shared his experience of working with the fresh combo of actors.

“Gautam Rode was an absolute revelation, because I had only seen him on and off on television. When I met him he came across as an intelligent actor, a person with a very interesting persona onscreen. And I wanted a Daniel Craig-like suave investment banker who ​would smooth​ ​​talk through the film and Gautam fit​ted​ the role like a glove. And I am so glad I took this decision because now when I see the film, I can see how cleverly he has pitched his character,” said Mahadevan.

The director believes that the audience will look at Zareen Khan very differently after this film. He said, “I had to sort of convince the audience that this is not the Zareen Khan you know, this a Zareen Khan who is a powerhouse of acting and who can carry a gamut of emotions right from vulnerability to the point where she is forced into a corner and wants to extricate herself from an extremely complicated situation. Her​’s is probably the most multi-dimensional character in the film, and after this film people are going to look at Zareen Khan very differently.”  (Also Read: Why 11 years between ‘Aksar’ and ‘Aksar 2’, reveals director)

And how did Abhinav Shukla land up the role in ‘Aksar 2’? “Abhinav is quite an adventurer, he is a tro​u​per, a mountaineer and he goes into all this expeditions without even telling anyone. When I wanted to ​call him and ​cast him, he was probably scaling some mountain peak and couldn’t even come to the phone and I was almost on the verge of giving up because he just didn’t answer the call. He didn’t get back to us for almost a week, but then finally at the last moment he did! When I met him, I ​realised he fitted the character of this very aristocratic​ lad​, who has been denied ​his due in life and is​ hence​ trying to seek redemption.

All these actors just fell into place so correctly and they enjoyed the entire shoot even when they were not a part of the scenes. And Abhinav was also trying to film the making of the film. So, somewhere they all came together so very well that when you see them as a team onscreen, you think they probably have lived together for a long time or worked together for a long time,” Mahadevan explains.

“When Sreesanth was around, it was all cricketing history , ​with Gautam ​its his own stories to tell, Zareen goes into a laughing fit and it is so difficult to control her when she really enjoys the atmosphere around. So it was a very happy go lucky team and they probably took me so seriously that they wouldn’t try any pranks on anyone. But if they have done it secretly behind my back, I don’t know… Even Lillete (Dubey) managed to blend into this group very well. So, it was a pleasant, warm atmosphere, that was conducive to shooting and that’s the reason why we could complete it in a record number of days,” he added.

​W​hen asked about the recent Harvey Weinstein scandal, Mahadevan said, “This is very uncanny, what is happening with the Weinstein company and what is happening with all the skeletons suddenly popping out of the cupboards of all the Hollywood actors… And the Bollywood actresses were keeping mum because they feel that they will be victimised if they try and speak against the people who might have taken advantage of them. You won’t believe​,​ this is the major part of the plot of ‘Aksar 2’. And it would look as though we have just filmed it yesterday and put it onscreen on the 17th of November. You’ll be alarmed and shocked to see ​that the situations in ‘Aksar 2’ ha​ve actually been happening over the last few weeks in real life. The scenes just seem to be torn out of today’s headlines.”

Aksar 2’ also stars Mohit Madaan playing a pivotal role. It is slated to hit the screens on November 17, 2017.

Amod Pandit

Quiet, resonant, and creative, he can be seen immersed in his own world, and puts in his heart and soul into the one passion that he has, Bollywood. His line for survival? Feel happy to be a part of it.