“Was A Little Upset When…”: Sriram Raghavan Reveals Saif Ali Khan Wanted To Play Vijay Sethupathi’s Role In ‘Merry Christmas’
Sriram Raghavan revealed that Saif Ali Khan wanted to play the lead role in ‘Merry Christmas’, which later went to Vijay Sethupathi.
Saif Ali Khan, a renowned actor in the Indian film industry, began his cinematic journey in the early 1990s when he made his acting debut in the film ‘Parampara’ (1993). However, it was his role in ‘Yeh Dillagi’ (1994) that garnered him recognition and marked the start of his successful career. Throughout his decades-long career, Saif Ali Khan appeared in hit projects like ‘Dil Chahta Hai’, ‘Omkara’, ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’, ‘Love Aaj Kal’ and ‘Sacred Games’. Saif Ali Khan also ventured into production with his company, Illuminati Films.
Saif Ali Khan, who was last seen on the silver screen in ‘Adipurush’, could have starred in Sriram Raghavan’s upcoming movie ‘Merry Christmas’. For the unversed, the upcoming movie stars Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi in the lead roles.
In a recent interaction, Sriram Raghavan said that he was thrilled about this casting but before he brought Vijay Sethupathi on board as the male lead, there was another actor who had shown his interest in the part and that actor was Saif Ali Khan. However, Sriram Raghavan revealed that he had to refuse Saif because he “wanted something fresh”.
Talking to Pinkvilla, Sriram Raghavan said that he “wanted a very unique kind of pairing because that’s the story requirement.”
“One should not get any baggage from either of them that what are these people about and so on,” he shared.
After the director cast Katrina Kaif in the lead role, he met Saif Ali Khan for the role of the male lead but later decided that he wouldn’t be right for the part.
“I had met another actor who had liked the role also. Then I told him sorry I want to… because he had worked with her before,” Sriram Raghavan said.
Sriram Raghavan said that Saif Ali Khan was “actually a little upset later when I told him no. At that time, I had not cast Vijay. I was just saying I want something fresh. I don’t know what I’m looking for.”
Sriram Raghavan and Saif Ali Khan have worked together in films like ‘Ek Hasina Thi’ and ‘Agent Vinod’.
The director said that he was on his way to Melbourne when he watched Vijay Sethupathi’s 2018 film ‘96’. Vijay Sethupathi was also at the same event in Melbourne.
“I asked him ‘Do you speak Hindi?’ He said, ‘I have worked in Dubai for three years. I said, ‘Okay, great’,” Sriram Raghavan recalled.
Talking about casting Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi together, he said, “I said this is a very interesting and oddball combination that will make people curious. And I myself was curious because with any regular pairing, I could sort of imagine the movie. Here, I didn’t know myself so that excitement was there.”
Talking about ‘Merry Christmas’, the movie has been shot in two languages -- Hindi and Tamil. ‘Merry Christmas’ is Sriram Raghavan's first film since the National award-winning ‘Andhadhun’ (2018) starring Ayushmann Khurrana, Tabu and Radhika Apte.
The filmmaker is known for his neo-noir thrillers and ‘Merry Christmas’ is being touted as another suspense film with a twist.
Besides Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi, the Hindi version of ‘Merry Christmas’ will also star Sanjay Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Pratima Kannan, and Tinnu Anand. Meanwhile, the Tamil version has Radhika Sarathkumar, Shanmugaraja, Kevin Jay Babu, and Rajesh Williams.
Ashwini Kalsekar and Radhika Apte will be seen in an exciting cameo appearances. Reportedly, the crime thriller will revolve around an uneventful day that turns Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi’s worlds upside down. It is about an event that takes place on Christmas Eve.
‘Merry Christmas’ is releasing in theatres on January 12, 2024.
