Mukesh Chhabra reveals how he found Atiq Ahmed and Nawaz Sharif lookalikes for Dhurandhar 2, reacts to memes | Interview

Dhurandhar casting director Mukesh Chhabra talks about the praise for the film's casting and finding ‘niche’ actors for some roles.

Ever since Dhurandhar 2 released in theatres last week, the discussion is as much about Aditya Dhar's ‘detailing’ and Ranveer Singh’s performance as it is about the support cast. Some of the actors playing characters inspired by real figures are dead ringers for those figures. So much so that there are theories that AI was involved. We spoke to casting director Mukesh Chhabra about what went into casting these roles and his process for the two blockbusters.

Mukesh Chhabra is the casting director of Dhurandhar.

Dhurandhar and Dhurandhar 2 were shot back-to-back in 2024-25, with Mukesh and his team casting over 300 roles. While the main cast, including Ranveer Singh, Akshaye Khanna, and Rakesh Bedi, has earned acclaim, the supporting cast has been praised for its resemblance to the roles they play. Actors playing roles inspired by ISI financier Javed Khanani, former Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, and UP gangster Atiq Ahmed have befuddled audiences with their resemblance.

Mukesh Chhabra on Dhurandhar's casting

When we tell the casting director about memes claiming the real Nawaz Sharif was hired to play ‘Nawab Shafiq’ in the film, he laughs it off. But he does call it ‘high praise’.

Talking about how he and his team balanced between looking for actors who resembled the characters and finding solid performers, Mukesh says, “It depends on the role. In some roles, I went for physical appearance. But for others, I needed a great performer, and then we could make them look like the character. For instance, with Atif Ahmed, I wanted him to look like Atiq Ahmed. Of course, he also needed to act. So, it had to be a mix and match of both. Then, I knew (Danish Pandor, who plays) Uzair Baloch is a great actor, and you can create his look accordingly. There, we needed a good actor first.”

The veteran casting director also credits the film’s hair and makeup artist, Preetisheel Singh, for the actors' transformations. “Preetisheel also did a great job with the hair and makeup and how she transformed those actors into the characters,” he says.

‘Praise makes me happy for casting community’

The two Dhurandhar films have brought renewed focus to casting in India, a hardly discussed aspect of filmmaking. Talking about the winds of change, Mukesh Chhabra says, “I have been casting for the last 20 years. I see the way people are now taking this job seriously and giving it a lot of love, and that makes me happy for the whole community. Not just for myself, I am also happy for Shanoo (Sharma), Karan & Nandini, Casting Bay, and my entire community. The system had been in place, and the work is finally paying off.”

Dhurandhar stars Ranveer Singh as an Indian spy in Pakistan. The first film, which also starred Akshaye Khanna, Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan, and Sanjay Dutt, grossed ₹1300 crore worldwide. The sequel, which released last week, has already grossed ₹850 crore worldwide. The two films also star Rakesh Bedi, Sara Arjun, and Danish Pandore in pivotal roles.