Akshay Kumar started appearing in films with a lot of nationalist sentiment a few years ago and while some have failed to create a strong impression, Airlift has managed to stand out. Raja Krishna Menon’s film recently turned 10 years old and the director recently revealed that Akshay was not the first choice for the film. In fact, the director initially approached Irrfan Khan.
Recalling how it all unfolded, Menon told Bollywood Hungama, “The first actor I approached was Irrfan Khan. It happened through producer Nikkhil Advani. I met Nikkhil because I was told he was looking for new ideas.” He added, laughingly recounting his interaction with Irrfan, who said, “Raja, it’s a great script, but your vision is Hollywood. But with me, you won’t get money to do something that comes close to your vision.” Menon said he initially thought Irrfan was simply politely declining the film.
But then Menon revealed that even producer Nikkhil Advani had a similar concern. “Nikkhil also suggested that I should approach a star. He and Vikram Malhotra (co-producer) met Akshay for some other project. During that narration, Akshay asked if they had any different and exciting scripts. That’s when they told him about Airlift. He asked for a narration. Nikkhil told me, ‘I know you are considering Irrfan, but please meet Akshay’. I was not sure and was wondering why a big Bollywood star would work with me. “I was a little scared and uncomfortable.”
Despite her misgivings, Menon met Akshay and everything fell into place. “However, I met him. After 40 minutes of narration, he told me: ‘Chalo, banate hai foto.’ (Great, let’s do it). I couldn’t believe my luck!
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Interestingly, Nikkhil Advani had narrated a similar case years earlier, pointing out that it was Irrfan who suggested Akshay, believing that the project could secure a bigger budget with him. Speaking to Galatta Plus, Nikkhil said: “Airlift director Raja Menon wanted Irrfan, which was fine with us because he was working on D-Day. I told them I would schedule a meeting with Irrfan, and Irrfan listened to me. He told me: ‘Boss, just say something with your photo. (Don’t make this movie with me). It’s a fantastic movie but don’t do it with me because you won’t get the budget. Go to Akshay. You know Akshay.’”
Nikhil She also remembers her first meeting with Akshay.“So, I went to Akshay with another film, and he said that was rubbish. Then I narrated Airlift to him and told him that Irrfan didn’t want to do it. He asked me, ‘Why did you come to see me then?’ I told him, ‘You can’t do it because it is a very serious film and you will have to memorize all the lines, and director Raja Menon wants to do workshops.’ He told me he wanted to do it. I told him that Raja doesn’t love you, but Akshay made the film. He attended workshop after workshop.”