‘I Was Blessed To Have Worked Twice With Dharamji’

Q Yours is the last film that Dharmendra worked on. So I think it has acquired a new sense of relevance.

Yes. I worked with him earlier, in Johnny Gaddar, which he regarded as one of his favourite films in recent times. We had a fun shooting that. And now Ikkis.

He was still the same affectionate Dharamji but he was even more hungry because Johnny Gaddar was a story where he was part of an ensemble cast and in Ikkis he had a very substantial role.

Q Dharamji was part of the original cast, wasn’t he?

Yes of course. When the subject came up, I felt it would be a wonderful role for him, and called him up. He used to keep telling me, ‘Let’s do something.’ And he had a lot of unspent energy. He wanted me to remake The Bridges of Madison Country. But I’m not a remake person. So when I got this chance, I offered him Ikkis. Because of the Covid. delay, he would keep asking me, ‘Are you still doing it? Doing it with me?’ I promised him we would start as soon as possible. Luckily, we began it in October 2023.

Q What was the first day of shooting with him like?

The first schedule was around him. Though he was a little older, he still had the same energy and enthusiasm he brought to Johnny Gaddar. He used to go over the scenes and rehearse them with us, including the many new actors on board. And when he was not shooting, he was telling us stories and anecdotes. And reciting poems. In fact, we used one of his poems in our film.

Q You had started Ikkis with Varun Dhawan isn’t it?

Yes. Because of the delay, Varun didn’t fit in age-wise. The soldier Arun Khetrapal was martyred at 21. Agastya was the perfect fit. His performance will surprise everybody.

Q Dharamji seemed to be very attached to Agastya.

Yes Agastya and Dharamji became very close. Dharamji looked after Agastya on the set like his own grandson. It was also because Agastya is Mr. Bachchan’s grandson. There has been bonding between the two families for generations.