Indra Kumar on Total Dhamaal: Took just one narration to get the cast in place

After Dhamaal (2007) and Double Dhamaal (2011), filmmaker Indra Kumar had to up his game for the third film in the series, Total Dhamaal (2019). He added three new names to the cast, all big stars — Ajay Devgn, Anil Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit — to join the previous cast members Arshad Warsi, Riteish Deshmukh, and Jaaved Jaaferi.

The previous films also included stars like Sanjay Dutt and Kangana Ranaut, though they are not returning for this instalment. Besides the new and returning cast members, actor Sanjai Mishra and Pitobash are also part of the film.

Producer-director Indra Kumar has previously worked with all three stars in his home productions. His first film as director was Dil (1990) starring Madhuri Dixit, and repeated the actress in superhit film Beta (1992) with Anil Kapoor. He also directed Ajay Devgn in Ishq (1997) and Masti (2004).

“It was nostalgic as I was teaming up with Ajay, Anil and Madhuri after a long time. There was no trouble getting any of the actors on board because their tracks had them laughing out loud. It took just one narration to get the cast in place. And as a director, I’ve played to everyone’s strengths,” the filmmaker explained.

He thanked his star Devgn for the film and shared, “A talented actor like Ajay can be moulded repeatedly in different ways. He has been around for three decades and given us many comedies, but no two films of his have been alike. This film too will present him in a never-seen-before avatar. Without his support, Total Dhamaal, wouldn’t have been made, as he is involved both creatively and financially. He will continue to be a part of this franchise from here on.”    

Total Dhamaal is produced by Fox Star Studios, Ajay Devgn Films, Ashok Thakeria, Indra Kumar, Sri Adhikari Brothers, Anand Pandit and co-produced by Sangeeta Ahir and Kumar Mangat Pathak. It is due to be released on 22 February 2019.