Himesh Mankad (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 11, 2019)
Mirror was the first to report (July 15) that Ishaan Khatter and Ananya Panday are teaming up for Ali Abbas Zafar’s maiden production, a romantic action-thriller primarily set in Mumbai. Soon after, it was revealed that the film is titled Khaali Peeli and will be directed by Maqbool Khan. Now, we have learnt that the makers have roped in Jaideep Ahlawat, known for his performance in films like Raazi, Gangs of Wasseypur and Raees, to play the negative lead in the film.
“It’s a performance-driven film. We zeroed in on Jaideep because he is an incredible actor. He perfectly fits the bill of the strong negative character, which is the quintessential Indian villain. He plays a significant part in the story,” says Ali, who is producing the film with Zee Studios and Himanshu Kishan Mehra.
Jaideep insists that the role is different from what he has done till date. “It’s a challenging villain, and quite different from what I have been doing so far. I hope to do justice to the part and I am looking forward to work with these young talents,” the actor smiles, referring to his co-stars.
The film marks Ishaan and Ananya’s first collaboration and takes off after a chance meeting between the protagonists one night. In the past, Ali has revealed that he worked on the script for over a year with his director before taking it into the casting and prep stage. The film will be shot entirely in Mumbai, and besides the three principal characters, an ensemble is also in place.
