'We Were Not Happy': Drishyam 3 Director Abhishek Pathak On Akshaye Khanna's Sudden Exit A Week Before Shoot

Akshaye Khanna's exit from Drishyam: The Conclusion just seven days before a key scene between Ajay Devgn and Khanna jolted the team. Director Abhishek Pathak had to rework the film while production was already in motion. The set was ready, dates were locked, money had been spent and the crew had already assembled when the team faced the last-minute casting crisis.

Abhishek Pathak on Akshaye Khanna's exit from Drishyam 3

Pathak told Hindustan Times that the team was upset by how Khanna's exit unfolded, even as it had little choice but to keep the film moving.

"I won't say panic, but we were not happy with the whole idea. I thought, 'Ye kya tareeka hua (What is this)?'" Pathak said.

That left the director with a week to solve a problem that would usually take much longer. The immediate issue was not only replacing an actor who was meant to reprise his part from Drishyam 2, but also protecting a live production that had already committed dates, money and labour.

Production pressure builds

Postponing the shoot would have been the simple answer. But Pathak could not just push the schedule back and search for a replacement at leisure because the production had already moved too far ahead.

Pathak decided to continue rather than cancel because over 200 people were dependent on the film for work. "The tough part was the call to continue, to just tell the team: 'Hold on, don't cancel anything. We will do it'. Bol to diya par ab karna bhi padega. Likhna bhi tha (I said it, but now I had to do it and rewrite things)," he recalled.

Pathak took two or three days to see if he could pull it off. He was not only searching for a replacement; he also had to reshape the role so the shoot could stay on track.

Jaideep Ahlawat's entry

Jaideep Ahlawat entered the film only after Khanna's exit. He had to step into a role that audiences already linked with Khanna, which made the replacement more than a routine recast.

"I told him I was changing the character," Pathak recalled.

Ahlawat read the revised material, had a look test in Mumbai and did two readings with Pathak. He arrived just one or two days before his shoot.

"All that happened within 5-6 days," Pathak said. "He had a few days. We did two readings before I left for my shoot, and then he came 1-2 days before his shoot was supposed to start. He asked a few questions and read the script. He had a look test in Mumbai. We both leaned on each other because it was all so last-minute," he added.

"For him, it was a challenge entering a journey he wasn’t a part of earlier. For him to come and become a part of the film was challenging, but he did it beautifully," he said further.