Anurag Kashyap Says It Was Challenging To Cast A Transgender Actor For Kukoo’s Role In Sacred Games – News18

Sacred Games played a pivotal role in kickstarting the OTT trend in India, setting a new standard for web series in the country. The Netflix series, featuring talented actors like Saif Ali Khan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Pankaj Tripathi, and more, garnered immense love for its gripping narrative and interesting cast members. Meanwhile, Kubbra Sait’s portrayal of the transgender character Kukoo added depth to the series. In a recent interview while promoting Haddi, Anurag Kashyap, one of the creators, confessed that they initially wanted to cast a transgender actor for Kukoo’s role for authenticity. However, they struggled to find an actor from the community as no one from that background was willing to play the part.

In a conversation with Pinkvilla, the filmmaker said, “Kukoo ki casting ke time, whenever we reached out to somebody who’s a transgender, they said no. They said no because, they were at that time the world was not ready to accept them, they were also in fear. What has happened, in the post pandemic time, people are becoming more and more aware and they’re accepting.”

Anurag Kashyap further pointed out that recent shows like Made In Heaven and Abhishek Bachchan starrer Ghoomer have featured transgender actors in key roles. However, Kashyap highlighted that casting should not be solely based on representation. To secure roles, these actors must showcase their talent and undergo workshops, just like any other actor. Kashyap believes that change will happen very soon.

In the same interview, Anurag Kashyap shared an interesting anecdote about his first encounter with Nawazuddin Siddiqui. He mentioned that during their initial meeting, he didn’t really notice Nawaz. Instead, the meeting was primarily about Rajpal Yadav, who was leaving town at the time. Kashyap and some friends tried to convince Rajpal to stay and in the process, Nawazuddin, who was also present with him. Both Nawazuddin and Rajpal ended up with roles in Shool, where Nawazuddin played a minor role.

“Nawazuddin ko pehli bar dhyan diya tha Black Friday ke shoot ke time. Jab aap camera ke through kisiko dekhte hai like director, tab maine pehli bar dhayan diya tha. His presence was so strong. So that was the first time I really noticed him. Since then it’s been non-stop. (I first noticed Nawazuddin during the shoot of Black Friday. When you look at someone through the camera, like a director, that’s when I first noticed him),” he added.

Apart from Nawazuddin and Anurag Kashyap, Haddi also features Ila Arun, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Saurabh Sachdeva and Saharsh Shukla. The movie is set to release on September 7. Additionally, Anurag is eagerly anticipating the release of his next film, Kennedy, starring Sunny Leone and Rahul Bhat.