‘Are you mad?’: Akshaye Khanna almost turned down playing villain in Dhurandhar

Casting director Mukesh Chhabra revealed that two or three big stars had turned down the role of Rehman Dakait in Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar before Akshaye Khanna agreed to do the film. When informed the story, Khanna questioned the idea of playing a villain and famously exclaimed, "Are you mad? Why would I play the villain?" After listening to the story for five minutes, he enthusiastically agreed to do the film on the same day.

Chhabra praised Dhar's writing and conviction as a filmmaker, noting that he listens to himself and has the conviction to do what he wants. The actor added his own touch to Dhar's writing, bringing an exceptional level of execution to the script. Industry tracker Sacnilk reported that Dhurandhar has earned a combined Rs 3,120.74 crore worldwide.