Mohit Suri says he cast Aneet Padda in Saiyaara as he ‘wanted someone who hadn’t altered her face or body’

Mohit Suri recalled how Ahaan Panday ‘saved the situation’ during his first meeting with Aneet Padda for Saiyaara casting.

Filmmaker Mohit Suri’s Saiyaara is captivating hearts and breaking records at the box office. Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda’s chemistry in the film has become the talk of the town. In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Mohit revealed why he chose Aneet as the lead heroine and recalled their disastrous first meeting.

Mohit Suri reveals what made him cast Aneet Padda in Saiyaara.

Before the release of the film, Mohit talked about the casting process and revealed that it was Aditya Chopra who introduced him to Ahaan. Although he didn’t initially see his film’s character in Ahaan during their first meeting, he spent time with him and eventually recognised the qualities he was looking for.

Mohit Suri reveals why he chose Aneet Padda for Saiyaara

Mohit further opened up about the reason he cast Aneet in the film and said, “I’m sorry if I don’t sound politically correct, but one thing that was very scary was that I wanted a 20–22-year-old girl who hadn’t done anything cosmetological to her face or body in today’s age. That was a big requirement. I wanted someone who felt real and hadn’t altered her body. Aneet had done some work before, and she was great at it. She was predominantly a great actor, especially for the part I required her to play. She came through all the slaughtering of auditions.” He added that other actors also gave good auditions, but they were “too done up”.

He then opened up about how he broke the ice with Aneet and said, “It was a disastrous first meeting with her. She came into the office wearing a yellow costume, and Ahaan was there with me. I told her, ‘What the hell are you wearing?’ Someone had told her that’s how the character was. She must have got really scared, and when this generation gets scared, they get chatty. But Ahaan tried to take all the chattiness onto himself. Her tests, though, were damn good.” He revealed that Ahaan saved the situation for Aneet that day.

About Saiyaara

The romantic musical drama features Ahaan as a struggling musician whose life takes a turn when he crosses paths with Vaani Batra (Aneet), an ambitious aspiring journalist. Their love story unfolds through a series of emotional highs and lows, set against the backdrop of dreams, passion, and heartbreak.

Apart from Ahaan and Aneet’s chemistry and Mohit Suri’s direction, what struck a chord with the audience is the music. From Tum Ho Toh, Saiyaara, Barbaad, to Humsafar, fans can’t stop crooning the melodies. The film has crossed the ₹100 crore mark at the box office in just four days and continues to attract audiences to theatres.