Mumbai

Director Sriram Raghavan has revealed that actor Saif Ali Khan was initially hesitant to star in the 2004 neo-noir thriller Ek Hasina Thi.

The film, which marked Raghavan’s directorial debut, was produced by Ram Gopal Varma and starred Saif Ali Khan alongside Urmila Matondkar in the lead role.

Speaking during a masterclass session on the third day of the Red Lorry Film Festival, Raghavan said Saif was uncertain about taking up the role at that stage of his career.

“For Urmila, it was an author-backed role, and Saif was a little unsure because he had just done Dil Chahta Hai. He had just started getting a sense of whether people liked him or not; he had not had many successes for a long time,” the director said.

He added that “Ek Hasina Thi” was Saif’s 44th film, and the actor was unsure if the project was the right choice.

“But somehow we got along; we liked the same films and books. So, he trusted me,” Raghavan said.

The director, known for thrillers such as Johnny Gaddaar, Badlapur and Andhadhun, said the idea for “Ek Hasina Thi” came to him after he lost the opportunity to direct Ab Tak Chhappan.

Raghavan said the project, which was initially titled “Daya”, centred on an encounter cop and had been developed with Varma. However, the filmmaker decided the timing was not right for the project.

“At that point my face fell, and he saw it and said there’s one more story, just look at it,” Raghavan recalled.

The director said he later read and developed the script of “Ek Hasina Thi”, written by Pooja Ladha Surti, who went on to collaborate with him on several films including “Badlapur”, “Andhadhun” and Merry Christmas.

Raghavan also spoke about the advice he received from Varma after completing the final cut of the film.

“He said, ‘You’ve made a good film. I would advise that since you’ve made a good film, do not try to repeat it,’” Raghavan said, adding that Varma also encouraged him to enjoy the process of filmmaking rather than chase success.

The director further revealed that he had once planned to adapt author Ira Levin’s novel A Kiss Before Dying but abandoned the idea after learning that a Hindi adaptation was already in the works.

The novel later inspired the Hindi film Baazigar starring Shah Rukh Khan.

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Raghavan’s latest release is the war drama Ikkis, based on the life of Arun Khetarpal. The film features Agastya Nanda in the lead role and has received positive reviews for its peace-oriented narrative, though it has not drawn large audiences to theatres.