Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar took the box office by storm, with the filmmaker releasing two parts within a span of four months. Both films made a strong impact on audiences. After the release, Akshaye Khanna gained significant attention for his role as Rahman Dakait, a notorious Lyari ganglord. However, he was not the first choice for the role, in fact, he was the fourth actor approached, as three actors had earlier turned it down.

Mukesh Chhabra on Rahman Dakait casting

In a conversation with Bollywood Hungama, casting director Mukesh Chhabra revealed that three actors rejected the role for unusual reasons. Without naming them, he said, “Ek actor South se thhe, aur baki do Bollywood ke thhe. They gave me a very weird logic. They said, ‘Ye ensemble cast hain (This is an ensemble cast).’ ‘Ye toh Ranveer ki picture hain (This is Ranveer Singh's picture).’ I said okay leave, and Aditya [Dhar] is a cool guy and he said it is fine. He was sure about his film. I did feel bad because we think of an actor after a lot of thought.”