Money Heist director Alex Rodrigo picked Ayushmann Khurrana to play the Professor in an Indian version of the show. He also picked Shah Rukh Khan and Ranveer Singh for other parts.

Money Heist director Alex Rodrigo picked Indian actors who’d be suited to star in a remake of the hit Spanish-language show, which aired its fourth season on Netflix recently. Rodrigo wasn’t making his choices based on his familiarity of the actors’ work, but based on their appearance instead.

In an interview to YouTube channel BehindwoodsTV, Rodrigo was shown pictures of several Indian actors such as Vijay and Shah Rukh Khan, and asked to cast them in the roles. Rodrigo said that it wasn’t easy to pick one, but that Ayushmann Khurrana would probably make for a good Indian version of the Professor. Ayushmann in a recent Instagram post had expressed his love for Money Heist, and had publicly asked filmmakers to write a character like the Professor for him.

“The glasses, the movement,” Rodrigo said, noting the similarity between Ayushmann and the Professor. When he was shown the pictures of the Indian actors, Rodrigo picked Vijay as the Professor, Mahesh Babu as Tamayo, Ajith Kumar as Bogota and Shah Rukh as Berlin. He also picked Ranveer Singh as Denver, and Surya as Suarez.

Asked about whether he was aware of the show’s Indian fanbase, Rodrigo said, “I have a friend, who is an Indian actress, Usha Jadhav, and she told me about the phenomenon in India, and all I can say is thank you.”

Previously, Indian actor Ajay Jethi, who’d appeared in the latest season of the show, also picked his choices for the Indian remake. He told The Quint,“Ayushmann Khurrana is a good actor, he’s struggled hard to be where he is, but the first name that comes to mind when I think of The Professor; I think Irrfan Khan would take it to another level.”

TV Updated: May 08, 2020 11:11 IST

HT Entertainment Desk
Hindustan Times