‘Dhurandhar is not something I would make’: Sriram Raghavan says following the style of Aditya Dhar film would be ‘silly’ for him

Talking about Aditya Dhar, Sriram reflected on how they both won their National Awards in the same year: “Aditya and I shared the National Award stage when he made Uri, and I had Andhadhun. He has a different kind of sensibility and craft, and I love watching his films, but it is not something I would make.” In the same conversation, Sriram also spoke about the late legend Dharmendra, whose swan song is Ikkis. He said it was always a pleasure to work with the veteran, who brought spontaneity to every scene:

“With Dharamji, there was no acting. I mean, his walk, his gait, everything is part of the character. He connected deeply with the story. The pain of leaving his home in Punjab had settled in his body over the years. The idea of revisiting home became a very personal experience, he was totally into the character. He had a keen sense of dialogue and valued the economy of words. I gave him the dialogues, but always asked him how he would like to deliver them. He would offer his own improvisation, and I have used many of his lines. We would often discuss his poetry. I wanted him to get his poems published, but he was in no hurry. I requested him to recite one of his compositions for the film, and it was lovely.”

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Ikkis also marks the sophomore feature of Agastya Nanda, after The Archies. Initially, the role was offered to Varun Dhawan. Talking about the casting change, Sriram said, “Varun and I had just completed our successful collaboration in Badlapur, and he was keen on the idea. By the time we finished our preliminary scripting, the COVID-19 pandemic had happened, and we had to change our plans. As I developed the script, I gradually realised that age is integral to the story. In certain scenes, Arun is shown as 19. The age when Jeetendra could dance around trees in his 40s is over. The script demanded a fresh face, and Agastya was 21 when he was cast.”

He added that the role required an actor willing to dedicate crucial years of his life to the project: “We needed an actor who was willing to commit two to three years to the project. Simply put, it’s the story of a boy becoming a man. Young age apart, what Arun did heroically, for which he received the Param Veer Chakra, is something that happened in the last two hours of his life. Till those last two hours, he didn’t know he was a hero. I wanted Agastya to bring that urge to serve and the innocence about the outcome. I guess Agastya’s eyes reflect it.”