Director Rahul Dholakia Shares Story Behind Mahira Khan's Casting in Raees

In a recent interview with casting director Mukesh Chhabra on his YouTube channel, Raees director Rahul Dholakia revealed the story behind casting Pakistani actor Mahira Khan opposite Shah Rukh Khan in the 2017 Bollywood film. Dholakia shared how the team initially considered several prominent Bollywood actresses for the role, but none ultimately fit the part.

"We wanted an actor to play a 1980s Muslim girl. So, our first priority was to have an actress with good Hindi-speaking skills, and if she had a little bit of an Urdu twang, even better. We also wanted our heroine to have an innocence. And Shah Rukh was 50, so we wanted a heroine who is at least 30-something. Now, there are very few actresses (in India), who are in their 30s with good Hindi and an innocence," said Dholakia, explaining the casting process.

The director mentioned that Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor, and Anushka Sharma were considered for the role. However, they were deemed too expensive for the part, which was relatively small compared to their star power. "Then we went through a complete list which included Sonam [Kapoor] and Katrina [Kaif]. At the end of the day, we realised this wasn’t working for us. They were not really fitting the role. Shah Rukh Khan cannot romance an Alia Bhatt!” he added.

Mahira Khan, who gained popularity with the Pakistani drama Humsafar, eventually landed the role. Coincidentally, Mahira was in Mumbai during the casting process. Dholakia recounted how both Gauri Khan's and his own mother had seen Mahira's work on television and suggested her for the part. "Honey Trehan was casting for us. I called him up and asked if he knew Mahira. He said, ‘She is here in Mumbai for some promotional work.’ He then said, ‘I will bring her tomorrow, you can audition her for the role.’ We then auditioned her at the Excel office. After the audition, I declared, ‘I have found my Aasiya,’" Dholakia recalled.

Despite the political tensions between India and Pakistan at the time, which led to a ban on Pakistani artists in the Indian film industry, Mahira’s performance in Raees alongside Shah Rukh Khan received positive reviews. Her chemistry with the Bollywood superstar was well-received by audiences. The film, which also starred Nawazuddin Siddiqui, performed well at the box office. However, due to the ban, Mahira was unable to promote the film in India and has not appeared in any Indian projects since.

Raees, which portrayed Shah Rukh Khan as a bootlegger, became one of the highest-grossing films of 2017 and was praised for its performances and engaging storyline.