
Filmmaker Jude Anthany Joseph has said he walked out of a proposed Hindi film starring Ayushmann Khurrana after a production house referred to Malayalam superstar Mohanlal as a 'secondary artist'. Jude told…
Filmmaker Jude Anthany Joseph has said he walked out of a proposed Hindi film starring Ayushmann Khurrana after a production house referred to Malayalam superstar Mohanlal as a 'secondary artist'. Jude told Club FM that he had insisted Mohanlal be confirmed for the film before he would complete the script. The production house replied that they would 'think about the secondary artists' only after approving the screenplay. Jude said he found the term insulting for 'one of the finest actors in the country' and withdrew from the project with a non-disclosure agreement.

In a subsequent social media post, Jude clarified that the remark came from the producer and not from Ayushmann. Ayushmann responded by calling Mohanlal 'a legend' and said he hoped to work with him someday. Jude added that Ayushmann had liked the script and was not responsible for the project falling through.

The lazy narrative here pits Bollywood vs South Indian cinema, but the facts show Ayushmann Khurrana was not the offender. The disrespect came from an unnamed production house, not the actor himself. Instead of fanning regional rivalry, the real test is whether Bollywood producers will stop treating pan-Indian talent as secondary. The question: will Mohanlal's next Bollywood collaboration actually happen, or will this incident scare off other filmmakers?
Sources (2): hindustantimes.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.