Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap revealed that before Amruta Subhash was cast as RAW agent Kusum Devi Yadav in Netflix's Sacred Games, South Indian superstars Manju Warrier and Nayanthara were considered for the part.
During a roundtable interview, The Lunchbox producer said that the pair’s names were suggested when casting the second season of the show, which released in 2019. "We were trying to get her (Manju) for Amrita Subhash's role... Different language actor... We were auditioning for Sacred Games. We gave them (Netflix) three options. We gave them an option of her, Nayanthara and one more person," Kashyap told reporters.
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"At that time, Netflix didn't have an India office. So, everything was going to the US. And at that time, OTTs were not really looking at South films. They were not looking at the South market. They wanted an actress to be picked up from where their market is. It was limited to Maharashtra or anywhere. Their choices are always based on algorithms where they are getting subscribers," he added.
Kashyap, a long-time admirer of South Indian cinema, has often shared high praise for Mollywood. He recalled a time when Warrier reached out to the filmmaker for feedback on her 2024 Malayalam film Footage. "Manju and I, we go (way) back... We first met in 2011-2013... We have common friends between us, Geetu Mohandas and Rajeev Ravi (couple, Moothon director and cinematographer, respectively). And we share the same birthday."
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A Hindi version of Footage, presented by Kashyap, will hit theatres on March 7.
