Earlier this week, NDTV confirmed that Dhurandhar star Akshaye Khanna has left Drishyam 3, days after the makers announced the film's release date. Now, in a new update, producer Kumar Mangat Pathak of Panorama Studios has confirmed that Jaideep Ahlawat has replaced Akshaye Khanna in the upcoming third installment of the Hindi version of Drishyam 3.
What's Happening
- In conversation with NDTV, Mangat shared that Akshaye Khanna's remuneration-which is said to be the reason for him walking out of the project-was negotiated thrice. Following this, Akshaye reportedly stopped responding to phone calls altogether.
- Furthermore, he added that his production company is in the process of sending a legal notice to Akshaye Khanna.
- Kumar Mangat went on to share more details on what led to Akshaye Khanna's sudden decision. The producer elaborated that there were certain differences related to Akshaye Khanna's hairstyle for his character, IG Tarun Ahlawat, in Drishyam 3.
- Mangat continued that his team tried to sort out the difference after discussions, but Akshaye has allegedly stopped taking calls at this point.
Earlier Reports Regarding Akshaye Khanna's Exit From Drishyam 3
According to an earlier report, Akshaye Khanna revised his fee to Rs 21 crore following the twin successes of Dhurandhar and Chhaava, and that didn't sit well with the Drishyam 3 makers due to budgetary constraints.
"Akshaye was menacing as the villain in Chhaava, while he stole the show, and how, in Dhurandhar. He has become the next big thing. Realising the same, he decided to revise his fees. Accordingly, he asked for Rs 21 crore from the makers of Drishyam 3," a source told Bollywood Hungama.
The Bollywood Hungama report quoted another insider who said that another bone of contention between Akshaye Khanna and the Drishyam 3 team was his demand to wear a wig. "One of them was that Akshaye suggested he'd like to wear a wig. The makers were not comfortable with the idea, probably because he was without a wig in the second part," the source added.
Akshaye Khanna's Character In Drishyam 2
Akshaye Khanna entered the Drishyam franchise back in 2022 as IG Tarun Ahlawat, a confidant of IG Meera Deshmukh (Tabu), who is hell-bent on getting Ajay Devgn's Vijay Salgaonkar behind bars for the murder of her son Sam.
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