Priyadarshan reveals he was discouraged from signing Akshaye Khanna in Doli Saja Ke Rakhna: 'Never found him difficult'

Filmmaker Priyadarshan recalled how he was discouraged to sign Akshaye Khanna in Doli Saja Ke Rakhna and was told Akshaye is difficult and moody.

Recently, Akshaye Khanna grabbed headlines after Drishyam 3 producer Kumar Mangat Pathak revealed that the actor left the film just 10 days before the shoot. The producer claimed that Akshaye demanded to wear a wig in Drishyam 3 after the success of Dhurandhar and further called him unprofessional and toxic. Now, in an interview with Mid-Day, filmmaker Priyadarshan spoke about Akshaye’s on-set behaviour.

Priyadarshan talks about Akshaye Khanna's on-set behaviour.

Priyadarshan on Akshaye Khanna's on-set behaviour

Priyadarshan recalled how everyone discouraged him from casting Akshaye in Doli Saja Ke Rakhna and said, "In my first film with Akshaye Khanna, Doli Saja Ke Rakhna (1998), everybody had discouraged me from signing him on. They said he is difficult and moody."

However, the filmmaker revealed that Akshaye was the complete opposite of what people said about him and added, "But I fell in love with him from the first film itself. I never found him difficult. If I called him at 5am, he would be there on time. He is a darling, and we’ve never had a bitter moment together in (the six films we did). He is least bothered by criticism."

Akshaye and Priyadarshan have worked together in several films. After their first collaboration in Doli Saja Ke Rakhna, they delivered hits such as Aakrosh, Hulchul and Hungama among others.

What the Drishyam 3 producer said about Akshaye Khanna

In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Kumar Mangat Pathak said that Akshaye left Drishyam 3 just 10 days before the shoot despite signing a contract. The filmmaker added that Akshaye repeatedly insisted on wearing a wig in the film. However, as it would have hampered the film’s continuity, his request was denied.

He added, "It’s important to note that the Drishyam franchise is fronted by Ajay Devgn. Chhaava is a Vicky Kaushal film along with Akshaye. The same goes for Dhurandhar – it’s Ranveer Singh’s film. If Akshaye does a solo film, it won’t even collect ₹50 crore in India. Forget the lifetime; if he thinks he has become a superstar, then he should try mounting a superstar-budget film with some studio and see who greenlights his film with that kind of budget. Some actors do ensemble-cast films, and after those movies become big hits, they start thinking that they are the star. That’s exactly what has happened with him. He thinks he’s a superstar now. Success has gone to his head. He told us, ‘Dhurandhar is working because of me.’ He needs to understand that multiple factors worked in favour of Dhurandhar."

Akshaye Khanna’s recent and upcoming films

Akshaye is currently riding high on success, with his film Dhurandhar crossing the ₹1,200 crore mark worldwide at the box office and becoming the highest-grossing Bollywood film ever. He now has the Telugu film Mahakali in the pipeline. Helmed by Puja Kolluru, the film is part of Prasanth Verma’s PVCU and will see Akshaye playing Asuraguru Shukracharya. The film’s release date is yet to be announced.