Saand Ki Aankh's Producer On Finalizing The Cast: 'Many Senior Actors Turned Down Roles As They Didn’t Want Non-Glamorous Roles

While actors Taapsee Pannu and Bhumi Pednekar have been appreciated for their looks as old women in Anurag Kashyap’s production,Saand Ki Aankh, critics have also pointed out that casting age-appropriate actors would have been better. In an interview to Mid Day, producer Nidhi Parmar has responded to the criticism.

Directed by Tushar Hiranandani, the film is based on the lives of sisters-in-law Chandro Tomar and Prakashi Tomar. The 60-year-olds, also known as Shooter Dadis, are being played by 31-year-old Taapsee and 29-year-old Bhumi.

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Claiming that the producers approached 15 senior actors for the role, Nidhi told the tabloid, “We approached actors in the age bracket of 55 to 60 since we felt the portrayals would be more convincing. However, most declined the role as they didn’t want to be seen in an unglamorous avatar, or felt that they weren’t ready for the physical preparation that the film demanded. Even younger actresses had the same concerns. Bhumi and Taapsee have shown a great deal of pluck in essaying a role that’s almost twice their actual age.”

“I have played a college kid after turning 30, and no one questioned me then. Instead of making an issue, people should be surprised that we took up these roles, as there are few actors who take the risk of ageing on screen unapologetically,” Taapsee said in the same report.

The first posters from Saand Ki Aankh show Taapsee and Bhumi as old women, wielding guns.

”In the past, people have played characters older than their age successfully. Anupam Kher in Saaransh (1984) and Nargis ji in Mother India (1957) are great examples. If we can play characters younger than our age, why can’t we play older characters as well?” Bhumi added.