Dhurandhar: Before Akshaye Khanna, 3 Actors Said NO to Rehman Dakait’s Role

Casting director Mukesh Chhabra discussed the casting issues for Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar (2025). He talked up about the actors who rejected Akshaye Khanna's Rehman Dakait part.

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About Akshaye Khanna's role in Dhurandhar

Mukesh Chhabra, the casting director, said that three famous actors turned down the role of Akshaye Khanna in Aditya Dhar's Dhurandhar (2025). He revealed that the film was previously rejected by a well-known South Indian star and two Hindi cinema actors.

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In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Chhabra discussed the casting problems that existed before to Akshaye Khanna's casting as Rehman Dakait. He stated, "I can't provide any names, but 2-3 actors turned down his part. I'm sure they're regretting that decision now. An actor from the South and two from Bollywood presented bizarre rationale. They stated it's an ensemble cast and Ranveer's film, but Aditya gets over his unfavourable ideas swiftly."

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The casting director had previously commented on Khanna's reluctance to take on the role in the Aditya Dhar film. In an interview with the Hindustan Times, Chhabra stated, "Initially, even Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt, and Akshaye Khanna were unsure about taking part in the film. Only R Madhavan answered yes. The others took their time. Aditya and I were contemplating so many individuals, and we had never imagined we'd cast so many famous names."

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Dhurandhar: The Revenge (2026) is the sequel to Dhurandhar and has been released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. 

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Apart from Khanna, the film also stars Ranveer Singh, Arjun Rampal, Sanjay Dutt, R Madhavan, Sara Arjun, Danish Pandor, Rakesh Bedi, Manav Gohil, Udaybir Sandhu, Bimal Oberoi, and Raj Zutshi. Jio Studios and B62 Studios collaborated on its production.

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The spy thriller was released in theatres on March 19, 2026, with star Pawan Kalyan's Telugu action movie Ustaad Bhagat Singh. Dhurandhar: The Revenge grossed Rs 1,492.17 crore globally during its 15-day run at the movie office.