Abhishek Banerjee is making waves with his role in Maddock’s supernatural horror-comedy, ‘Stree 2’. The actor, known for his versatile roles and comic timing in the ‘Stree’ film series, ‘Vedaa’, and ‘Paatal Lok’, is also a casting director. He has worked as a casting director on films such as ‘The Sky Is Pink’, ‘No One Killed Jessica’, and ‘The Dirty Picture’. During an interview with Siddharth Kannan, Banerjee revealed that he thought his career was over after Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions fired him during the casting of ‘Agneepath’.
Also Read: Hrithik Roshan to cameo as War’s Kabir in YRF’s ‘Alpha’
In the interview, Banerjee, known for his role as Jana in Maddock’s supernatural universe, said, “We were removed from ‘Agneepath’. We were casting for ‘Agneepath’ when Jogi (Mallang) bhai took over it. Why were we removed? Because Karan sir didn’t like our casting. We were casting Anurag Kashyap-type actors. He didn’t like it and said, ‘nikal jaao humaari film se’ (get out of our film). We thought our career was over because Dharma Productions kicked us out. We thought we were over, but thankfully, we survived.”
Karan Johar produced the film and Karan Malhotra directed it, but Banerjee did not specify which Karan he was referring to.
Dharma Productions’ 2012 film ‘Agneepath’ was a remake of the blockbuster 1990 film of the same name, which starred Amitabh Bachchan as Vijay Deenanath Chauhan. The remake was Karan Malhotra’s directorial debut and featured Hrithik Roshan, Priyanka Chopra, Rishi Kapoor, and Sanjay Dutt in key roles. Critics well-received the film and it proved to be a box office success.
Abhishek Banerjee began his career as a casting director in 2010 and has worked on several successful projects, including ‘Kalank’ and ‘OK Jaanu’. He also co-owns the casting company Casting Bay. Besides his work as a casting director, Banerjee has consistently showcased his acting talent and is currently enjoying the success of ‘Stree 2’, which also stars Shraddha Kapoor, Rajkummar Rao, Pankaj Tripathi, and Aparshakti Khurana in prominent roles. The film is currently breaking box office records and is ready to be one of the biggest hits of the year.