Jr NTR’s upcoming film Devraa is making waves on social media for all the right reasons, especially because it is the actor’s solo release after a gap of six years. Moreover, the project also marks the South cinema debut of two highly successful Bollywood actors, Janhvi Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan. And recently, at the pre-release event of Devraa, Jr NTR revealed what went behind such a perfect casting.
Jr NTR revealed that the team of Devraa really wanted to make a project like the humble beginnings of his previous film RRR, which won big globally. In fact, just like the SS Rajamouli-directed film, the actor wanted Devraa to be a film that would ‘resonate across the country’.
Talking about Janhavi who plays the lead role of Thangam in the film, Jr NTR revealed how the team was not sure about the casting for this particular character for a long time. However, it was filmmaker Karan Johar who suggested the diva’s name for the film.
Tarak said, “Honestly, while writing the script we had not chosen anyone for the lead female role. But she was playing it very well and then Karan Johar called me and said that Jhanvi is a great actress and we should cast her in the film.”
Making the revelations, Jr NTR also revealed that Janhvi had several apprehensions about this particular role in the film, especially the fact that she would have to deliver dialogues in Telugu. Moreover, the actor revealed how the diva was apprehensive about whether she was suited enough to carry forward the legacy of her mother and late actress Sridevi.
He said, “Yes, there was a lot of fear and tension inside her. How would she speak Telugu? How would she perform in Telugu? How would she dance and most importantly, would she live up to the legacy of Sridevi garu? But she surprised us with her performance.”
In the last leg of the conversation, Jr NTR also revealed the reason behind casting a senior Bollywood actor like Saif Ali Khan to play the villain in the film.
The Janta Garage star revealed that the makers wanted Saif to play a strong role just like Langda Tyagi from his old film Omkara. “We wanted to create a character like Langda Tyagi. He will have a strong presence in the story,” he said.
Devraa: Part 1, directed by Koratala Siva, will hit theatres on September 27, 2024.
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