Actor Abhishek Banerjee is featured in two releases this week, Stree 2 and Vedaa . Before gaining recognition as an actor, Banerjee worked as a casting director. Recently, in a talk with Siddharth Kannan, Banerjee recalled being fired from Agneepath , which was produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions for bringing in ‘Anurag Kashyap-jaise’ actors.
Multiple media reports said that Banerjee made accusations against Johar and his Dharma Productions, but the actor has now cleared the air regarding his statement. Banerjee said he never accused Johar of any wrongdoing, asserting that his casting company, Casting Bay, did a bad job with Agneepath . He said that Johar had nothing to do with the decision to fire his company’s services and reiterated that the filmmaker has worked with him on multiple occasions ever since his dismissal from Agneepath .
A post shared by Abhishek Banerjee (@nowitsabhi) In his full statement, Banerjee wrote, “ This week, I have been blessed with two releases and one controversy. I’ve been reading and hearing a lot of reports about Dharma Productions supposedly firing my company, Casting Bay, during the casting process of Agneepath (2012). Unfortunately, this situation has been completely misrepresented as accusatory on our part.
In a podcast/interview, I had stated the reason for our dismissal, acknowledging that we were unable to align with the vision of director Karan Malhotra for Agneepath. I also emphasized that Anmol and I were quite young at the time, around 20 to 23 years old, with little to no experience in casting for a major commercial film, which perhaps led to us misinterpreting Mr. Malhotra’s requirements for the project.
I have not accused or suggested any wrongdoing on the part of Dharma Productions. In fact, I have deep respect for Dharma Productions and Karan Johar. I never mentioned Karan Johar in relation to our dismissal, yet some reports falsely claim that he was the one who fired us.
The decision was actually made by Mr. Malhotra’s team, and I accepted our mistakes. I shared this story to encourage young people that even if you fail or hit a roadblock, you can always bounce back, as we did.
We went on to work on several projects with Dharma, starting with Ok Jaanu, Student of the Year 2, Kalank, and recent releases like Kill and Gyarah Gyarah. Additionally, Dharma even cast me as an actor in Ajeeb Daastaans. Dharma has always been very good to me and to my company, Casting Bay.
It is a relationship we value and nurture .” In public interest !! pic.twitter.
com/tPEOOgHE2D — Abhishek Banerjee (@nowitsabhi) August 19, 2024 He concluded by writing, “PS: I am not putting this out for the hamper.” Banerjee also stressed that his anecdote about getting fired was for the purpose of inspiring young aspiring filmmakers and actors to never give up even when they make mistakes, providing his own failure as an example. Meanwhile, Abhishek Banerjee, who started his career in Bollywood as a casting director, is best known for his roles in Stree , Stree 2 , Bhediya , and Paatal Lok .
He will next be seen in Tamil actor Suriya’s 44th movie. See Also: Stree 2 Star Abhishek Banerjee Reveals He Was Once Kicked Out Of Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions.
