Meet Banita Sandhu, Varun Dhawan’s new leading lady
One day, I called Banita and told her I may be casting her in the film, and that she should start taking workshops SHOOJIT SIRCAR, FILMMAKER
Remember the gorgeous model from a chewing gum ad film who went on to become a sensation last year? Now, the same stunner, Banita Sandhu, who hails from Wales (UK), is set to make her big Bollywood debut in Shoojit Sircar’s October, co-starring Varun Dhawan.
“Everybody loved Banita in a chewing gum commercial that I directed and it had almost 40 million hits. While I was shooting the ad film, Juhi (Chaturvedi; writer) and I were also working on the script. So, one day, I clicked a picture of Banita, and sent it to Juhi saying, ‘possibly, she has the potential to fit into the character that we are looking at,’” says Shoojit.
But, the filmmaker didn’t “tell Banita anything”. “I didn’t pursue it as we were still working on the script. Then, we locked the script and Varun was finalised. Later, we did look at other actors and then, one day, I called Banita and told her I may be casting her in the film, and that she should start taking workshops,” he says.
The Piku director admits that though the “news was broken to her”, makers “weren’t absolutely sure till that point too.” “But slowly, Juhi, Ronnie (Lahiri; producer) and I zeroed in on her and we were like, ‘she is the girl we should go for’,” says Shoojit, adding that the film will go on floors within a few weeks.