Sacred Games: Manju Warrier, Nayanthara were the first choice to play RAW agent, reveals Anurag Kashyap

Anurag Kashyap, who has directed seasons one and two of Sacred Games, recently revealed that he was trying to cast a South actress for the popular series. The Black Friday director said that he had initially wanted Malayalam actress Manju Warrier or Lady superstar Nayanthara play the role of a RAW agent. Read on to know why the South actresses were not cast in Sacred Games despite Anurag Kashyap pitching their names.

'Manju Warrier, Nayanthara considered for Sacred Games'

Sacred Games, created by Vikramaditya Motwane, is a popular series on Netflix, starring Saif Ali Khan. During a recent roundtable interview, Anurag Kashyp suggested three names for the role of RAW agent Kusum Devi Yadav in the series that was eventually played by Amruta Subhash in the second season. 

“We were trying to get her (Manju) for Amrita Subhash's role... Different language actor... We gave them (Netflix) an option of her, Nayanthara and one more person,” Anurag said, as per a recent report by PTI. 

However, revealing more about how the cast was picked, Anurag said that Netflix did not have an office in India at the time and everything was done through the US office. 

“At that time, OTTs were not really looking at South films. They were not looking at the South market. They wanted an actress to be picked up from where their market is. It was limited to Maharashtra or anywhere," said the ace filmmaker, who has been an avid supporter of south films.  

Notably, Anurag Kashyap is presenting the Hindi version of Manju Warrier’s Malayalam film Footage. The Hindi version of Footage, which also features Vishak Nair and Gayathri Ashok, will release in theatres on March 7, 2025. 

Anurag Kashyap in Malayalam, Tamil films

Anurag Kashyap recently made his acting debut in Malayalam recently with Aashiq Abu’s Rifle Club, which featured an ensemble cast. The 2020 film, which opened to positive reviews, is now streaming on Netflix.  

Also read - Rifle Club movie review: Aashiq Abu’s all-star cast fires in this fun, crisp and riveting thriller 

Anurag Kashyap had also featured in a Tamil film, Maharaja, starring Vijay Sethupathi. Nithilan Saminathan’s thriller film was a success and even made waves in China, where it had a release. Maharaja is also streaming on Netflix.