Chhaava: Not Akshaye Khanna but this superstar was the first choice to play Aurangzeb
Not only Vicky Kaushal, but Akshaye Khanna also charmed audiences with his remarkable performance in Chhaava. But did you know that the renowned Bollywood actor was not the first choice of the makers to portray the character of the Mughal emperor onscreen?
New Delhi: Chhaava wreaked havoc at the Box Office in February 2025 and emerged as the first superhit of the year. The historical flick received immense praise from moviegoers for its touching storyline and compelling performances by the star cast. While Vicky Kaushal garnered massive acclaim from fans for his portrayal of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, Akshaye Khanna as Aurangzeb was no less impressive.
But did you know the 49-year-old actor was apparently not the first choice for the character of the Mughal emperor? No, we are not kidding! Let us enlighten you on how things unfolded.
According to TV9Hindi, citing an ETimes report, the character was first offered to a Bollywood superstar. Any guesses who? Well, it was none other than Anil Kapoor. It is believed that he was even ready to sign the film. If things had gone well, Anil would have been seen as Aurangzeb.
But destiny had other plans. The role was ultimately played by Akshaye and, oh boy, he aced it!
Chhaava's blockbuster opening
The Laxman Utekar directorial, produced by Dinesh Vijan under his banner Maddock Films, recorded the biggest opening ever for a historical Hindi film. It earned Rs 33.1 crore net at the domestic Box Office. If we talk about worldwide numbers, it collected Rs 50 crore gross globally on the opening day.
Chhaava characters
Chhaava also features Rashmika Mandanna as Yesubai Bhonsale, Diana Penty as Zinat-un-Nissa Begum, Ashutosh Rana as Hambirrao Mohite, Divya Dutta as Soyarabai, Vineet Kumar Singh as Kavi Kalash and Kiran Karmarkar as Annaji Datto Sachiv. It was reportedly an adaptation of the Marathi novel Chhava by Shivaji Sawant.
Its music was composed by Academy Award-winning AR Rahman, with lyrics penned by critically acclaimed Irshad Kamil and Kshitij Patwardhan. The flick was initially scheduled to be released in 2024. However, it was postponed to 2025, finally releasing on the joyous occasion of Valentine's Day.
With inputs from Raghav Jaitly!