Navrang Ruperi

Here’s to Mukesh Chhabra, the man who saw Dhurandhar long before I truly did. There are people who come into a film and do their job and then there are people who quietly reshape the film itself. Mukesh was the latter. From the very first narration, he believed in the scale, the ambition, the sheer possibility of Dhurandhar far more than I did. Where I was cautious, he was fearless. Where I was thinking within limits, he pushed me to think bigger, not just in numbers, but in depth, in detail, in truth. The casting of this film was never going to be easy. The sheer number of actors, the range of characters, the responsibility of getting every single face right, it was overwhelming. But Mukesh and his team just went all guns blazing. My only brief to him was simple: bring me great actors, new or old, big or small, it doesn’t matter.
And he turned that into a mission. What followed were endless days and nights, sitting together, breaking down every character, debating, exploring, rejecting, discovering. Conversations that didn’t feel like work but like building something brick by brick with absolute honesty. For him, casting was never about filling roles, it was about finding people who belonged. Even for the smallest part, he went just as deep, just as far, making sure every person on screen felt real, lived-in, and true to the world. But beyond the craft, what I found in him was something even more rare, a friend, a well-wisher, a brother. Someone who stood by the film with complete faith, even when mine wavered. I truly hope this film makes people realise the power of casting, one of the most crucial, yet often overlooked aspects of filmmaking. It can make a film or break it. And it’s unfortunate that our industry still doesn’t celebrate casting directors the way it should. This film carries your choices in every single frame Mukesh! Endless gratitude, respect and love for you.❤️