Rajkummar Rao might be up for one of his biggest challenges on the screen after confirming that he is in line to play Dharmendra's iconic role in filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee's classic comedy, Chupke Chupke (1975). The actor said in an interview that work on the script for the remake is still ongoing.
In a quote to the daily Mumbai Mirror, the actor said, "It’s a big responsibility to step into his shoes. The scripting is underway now. We know that we can’t match Hrishida’s standard, but we will try to put our best foot forward."
The 1975 film is considered one of the finest comedies by Hrishikesh Mukherjee with an all-star cast of Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Om Prakash, and Asrani among them.
There have been reports of the film being remade, with early reports in 2013 suggesting 102 Not Out (2018) director Umesh Shukla was working on a script. In a Hindustan Times report on June 2013, Shukla had said, "We have made many changes in the script. It’s not a remake, it is an adaptation of Chupke Chupke."
However, the project never moved forward despite reports emerging of Paresh Rawal taking on the role of Om Prakash.
In April 2019, reports emerged of Bhushan Kumar of T-Series and Luv Ranjan collaborating on a remake of the Hrishikesh Mukherjee film. The production house had also roped in Rajkummar Rao for the role made famous by Dharmendra.
Chupke Chupke revolved around the story of Dr Parimal Tripathi (Dharmendra) who disguises himself as a driver to fool his brother-in-law (Om Prakash) causing a whole new comedy of errors.
Currently, the actor is awaiting the release of Made In China this Diwali, and also has the Hansal Mehta film, Turram Khan in the pipeline. Rao is also acting opposite Jahnvi Kapoor in Roohi Afza, which will release next year.