“I was laughing reading the age gap debate”: Mukesh Chhabra explains Ranveer Singh and Sara Arjun casting

Ranveer Singh and Sara Arjun’s casting in Dhurandhar drew attention soon after the film’s announcement, largely due to their nearly 20 year age difference. Addressing the discussion, casting director Mukesh Chhabra has said the gap was a conscious and necessary choice linked directly to the story.

Speaking to Free Press Journal, Mukesh explained that the casting followed a clear brief from the makers. According to him, the narrative demanded a young woman opposite Ranveer’s character. “I had got a very clear brief. The story is that he is trying to trap her. So, we knew that we wanted a young girl who is 20 21 years old. And when part 2 comes, whoever is talking about the age gap will get all the answers,” he said.

Mukesh also reacted to the public chatter around the pairing. He admitted that he found the debate amusing while reading about it. “It’s not like we don’t have good actors in that 26 27 years of age group; we have good actors. But this was required in the film. Everything you can’t explain to people. When I was also reading about the age gap, I was laughing. According to the film’s brief, it is correct,” he added.

Sara Arjun was born on June 18, 2005, while Ranveer Singh was born on July 6, 1985. Sara began her career as a child actor and gained early recognition with the Tamil film Deiva Thirumagal in 2011, where she played actor Vikram’s daughter. She later appeared in projects like Ek Thi Daayan, Saivam, and Saand Ki Aankh.

In 2022, Sara featured as a young Nandini in Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan films. Aishwarya Rai played the adult version of the character. The two part epic grossed nearly ?800 crore worldwide and remains her biggest commercial success so far. Reports in 2023 had estimated her net worth at around ?10 crore.

Dhurandhar centres on Hamza, an Indian spy who infiltrates Pakistan and becomes part of gangster Rehman Dakait’s network. The story draws inspiration from real events including the 2001 Parliament attack and the 26 11 Mumbai attacks. The film also stars Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan, Sanjay Dutt, and Rakesh Bedi. Its second part is scheduled for a theatrical release on March 19 next year.