Om Raut On Casting Saif Ali Khan In A Negative Role

Filmmaker Om Raut shot to fame after his Marathi directorial debut Lokmanya: Ek Yug Purush (2015) turned out to be a huge commercial success at the box-office. Soon after the success of Lokmanya: Ek Yug Purush, the writer-filmmaker started working on his next Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, which marks his directorial debut in Hindi cinema.

The upcoming film is a biographical drama based on the life of Tanaji Malusare, who was the military leader of Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, founder of the Maratha Empire. It stars Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan and Kajol in lead roles. Apart from featuring in the title role, superstar Ajay Devgn has also produced the film under his home banner Ajay Devgn Ffilms.

When asked about how Devgn came onboard to produce and star in Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, Om Raut shares with a publication, “I started writing this film right from 2015, and I took it to Ajay Devgn in 2017. Once he had liked the script, he decided to go ahead with it. And here we are.”

In the film, Saif Ali Khan will be seen in a negative role. When asked about how did he come about roping in the star in a negative character, Om Raut says, “We wanted a strong and amazing actor to play Uday Bhan. It is a very difficult part to play and we are happy with the way he has played his part. I cast him more because of his acting abilities than anything else. I honestly did not know about his negative roles in Omkara (2006) and Kachche Dhaage (1999). I was honest and selfish about my cinema and think it works,” the filmmaker adds in conclusion.

Produced by Ajay Devgn FFilms and T- Series Films, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior is scheduled to arrive in cinemas worldwide on January 10, 2020.