On September 28, Randeep Hooda kicked off his maiden directorial venture, SwatantryaVeer Savarkar, in a town near Nashik. While the actor-director has taken the responsibility of stepping into the shoes of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, he will need dependable co-actors to bring to screen an authentic retelling of the national hero’s contribution to India’s freedom struggle.

His search has ended with Ankita Lokhande and Amit Sial. Sources say that Lokhande has been brought on board to play Savarkar’s wife Yamunabai. She was a member of the Atmanishtha Yuvati Samaj, a body that aimed to make women politically aware.

The project marks producer Sandeep Ssingh’s first collaboration with long-time friend Lokhande. “Ankita and I have laughed, cried and travelled together. I want to cast her in all my films, and I would be happy if she [is so successful] that she doesn’t have dates for my project. She is a bundle of talent,” he says. The actors have joined Hooda in the ongoing first schedule. Even as he refuses to divulge details about her role, Ssingh says, “Ankita performs so well that people are left teary-eyed.”

Sial will apparently bring alive the character of Ganesh Savarkar aka Babarao, the eldest of the Savarkar brothers. He had helped set up the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). Ssingh heaps praise on Sial, saying, “His knowledge and passion for the art is commendable.”

Producer Anand Pandit adds that the actors “bring intensity” to the biopic.