Himesh Mankad (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 13, 2019)

After taking a break from slice-of-life comedies with Sriram Raghavan’s AndhaDhun, Ayushmann Khurrana will be seen as a cop for the first time in Anubhav Sinha’s Article 15. But the actor reveals that the film, which revolves around the caste system, was not the script Anubhav had first pitched to him. “Anubhav had called me for a rom-com but I had watched his last film, Mulk, which says things in such a different way. I told him that I wanted to do something like that and asked him if he had a script (for me). He narrated this one and I was hooked,” Ayush informs.

Hailing the film as one of the most socially relevant stories he has come across in his career, the actor says, “We are yet to see a film based on the caste system that says things as they are. I had seen a documentary called India Untouched four years ago. It is so intriguing, and Anubhav told me that he had been trying to find an actor who could feel for these things. So, we decided on this film, and he developed the script further.”

Ask Anubhav about his decision to cast Ayushmann, considering he is primarily known for social comedies, and the director says, “Ayushmann was an absolute natural while playing a cop. There was this irresistible urge to veer close to the popular heroic versions earlier played by Ranveer (Singh), Salman (Khan) and Anil Kapoor but somehow Ayushmann managed to tread into unchartered territory to carve out a heroic yet super realistic cop.”

He goes on to liken his leading man’s portrayal with that of Amitabh Bachchan in the 1973 drama, Zanjeer. “The last time I saw this combination in a performance was by Mr Bachchan. And yes, Ayushmann’s cop is angry too,” the director signs off.