Jaideep Ahlawat's latest film Maharaj is hitting all the right notes. In the Netflix film, the actor plays the role of villainous Jadunath Maharaj. But did you know Jaideep was not the first choice for this role? Director Siddharth P Malhotra himself revealed at a press conference that not Jaideep, but Irrfan Khan was the first pick for this character. “God bless his soul. In our opinion, nobody could play this role but Irrfan Khan,” he was quoted as saying by News 18. Siddharth also disclosed that there was a lot of pressure on Jaideep. The director kept reminding the actor that only he could meet up to Irrfan's level of performance.
Irrfan Khan died at the age of 53 in the year 2020.
Siddharth P Malhotra added that Jaideep Ahlawat is one of the best actors in the country right now. He also shared that Jaideep was not confident about taking the role. “He was unsure how he would play it,” the filmmaker said.
In addition to Jaideep Ahlawat's stellar acting, his dramatic physical transformation has left us all impressed. The actor shed over 26 kgs for his role. Highlighting his journey, Jaideep shared a before-and-after collage on Instagram. In the caption, he wrote, "From 109.7 Kg. to 83 Kg. in 5 month. That's the Physical Transformation for the Role of Maharaj." Expressing gratitude towards his fitness coach, Jaideep added, "Thank you Prajwal Sir for believing in me."
About Jaideep Ahlawat's performance in Maharaj, Saibal Chatterjee wrote in an NDTV review: “Jaideep Ahlawat towers over everything and everyone else in the film with an understated performance that exudes creepy mendacity. He never raises his voice and holds on to a near-beatific expression broken only by a variety of suppressed smirks, crooked smiles and all-knowing grins, all hallmarks of a man who thinks he is God and wants his flock to turn a blind eye to his dark deeds.”
Maharaj marks the acting debut film of Aamir Khan's son Junaid Khan. Sharvari Wagh and Shalini Pandey are also seen in the Netflix film.