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After Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar became the talk of the town, one question dominated discussions, who is “Bade Sahab”? Dhurandhar: The Revenge, which released today (March 19), has finally answered that for audiences: it is Danish Iqbal. In a recent interview with Zoom, Danish revealed that even he was unaware that his character was “Bade Sahab”.
Speaking about what excited him about his role in Dhurandhar 2, Danish said, “Let me tell you, this Bade Sahab discussion was never there. I mean, till about a couple of months ago, I was also not aware that I was playing Bade Sahab. I was in doubt. So, he (Aditya) was so secretive and kept so many things to himself.”
However, he clarified that he knew he was playing Dawood Ibrahim. “But yes, I was playing Dawood; I was pretty much aware of it. But Dawood is Bade Sahab, even I was not 100% confident. Everyone was addressing me as Dawood bhai or Sahab. About my character, no one said anything to me. So, it’s me all the time talking in my scenes,” he added.
Danish is a theatre actor who trained at the National School of Drama and later pursued further studies in London. He rose to fame with his role as Dilshad Mirza in Maharani Season 2. He has been part of shows like Aranyak, Sankalp and Aakhri Sach, and films such as Haq and Bhakshak. He essays the role of Bade Sahab in Dhurandhar: The Revenge, a character inspired by Dawood Ibrahim. His scenes from the film have gone viral on social media, with audiences praising his performance.
Dhurandhar created a stir at the box office. The film, which was released in December 2025, received mixed reviews from critics, with some calling it “propaganda”. However, positive word of mouth from audiences helped it emerge as a blockbuster. Helmed by Aditya Dhar, the film featured Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan and Sanjay Dutt, among others, in key roles.
While the first instalment followed Ranveer’s character Hamza infiltrating gangs in Lyari with a mission to dismantle a terror network affecting India — ending with him killing Akshaye’s character to rise to the top — the second part explores his origin story. It shows how he comes to rule Lyari while continuing his mission and facing more dangerous adversaries. The first film collected ₹1,300 crore worldwide, and the sequel has already crossed the ₹100 crore mark on day one.
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