It would not be wrong to say that Taapsee Pannu, Abhishek Bachchan and Vicky Kaushal’s performances in the 2018 film Manmarziyaan struck the right chord with fans. But did you know they were not the first choice for the film? In fact, the project was partially shot with a completely different cast.
Screenwriter Kanika Dhillon recently spilled the beans on the challenges she faced while bringing the Anurag Kashyap directorial to life.
“It took me 4-5 years to get the film greenlit, write it, re-write it, groom it and find people to make it. It was my biggest challenge so far,” she told The Screen.
Kanika Dhillon revealed, “Manmarziyaan started and it stopped in between, and then it restarted with a different set of actors. A lot of people were hesitant to play these roles because they felt uncomfortable that the audience wouldn’t accept it.”
“It seemed very risky to them to have the husband (Robbie, played by Abhishek Bachchan) supporting Rumi (played by Taapsee Pannu) and then the boyfriend (Vicky, played by Vicky Kaushal) being commitment-phobic, every character while I was going out to cast, I was met with certain insecurities,” she added.
Kanika Dhillon said the actors who played the roles were “the best,” and their involvement in the film felt like “destiny choosing them.”
Manmarziyaan follows the story of Rumi (played by Taapsee Pannu), a free-spirited woman, who falls in love with carefree and commitment-phobic Vicky (Vicky Kaushal). When he hesitates to marry her, she impulsively agrees to an arranged marriage with the calm and mature Robbie (Abhishek Bachchan). What follows is a rollercoaster of emotions as Rumi struggles to figure out what (and who) she wants.
In addition to Manmarziyaan, Kanika Dhillon is credited for films like Dunki, the Haseen Dillruba series, Judgementall Hai Kya, Raksha Bandhan and Do Patti.