Sara Ali Khan has consistently shown her willingness to step out of her comfort zone and explore different facets of her craft. From comedy and romance to emotionally layered characters, the actress has taken on roles that have allowed her to showcase her versatility.
When asked about the one role that demanded the most from her, both physically and emotionally, Sara revealed how, Atrangi Re came to her during a particularly challenging phase of her life. Sara shared, “Atrangi Re. So much is contextual. 2020 was a hard year for me… lockdown, COVID, lots of personal things had happened that year. To be given an opportunity like that in the midst of it all was challenging. Anger on the lips but pain in the eyes was Anand ji’s brief to me. A film that is driven around you, working with an outstanding actor like Dhanush… that was definitely challenging for me and equally rewarding because of that.”
The film’s idea was conceived by Rai in 2013, after the release of Raanjhanaa. He developed the screenplay with Sharma, exploring the subject of complexities of human emotions, especially love and was certain to cast Dhanush given the relativity of subject, script and time but the rest of the casting was eventual. As the project was officially announced in late-January 2020, the filming process began in March 2020 and completed within March 2021, despite losing out six months of filming in between owed to the COVID-19 pandemic in India. The film was shot across Varanasi, parts of Bihar, Delhi, Agra, Mumbai, and few scenes in Madurai, Karaikudi. The score and soundtrack album were composed by A. R. Rahman, with lyrics written by Irshad Kamil. The cinematography and editing were performed by Pankaj Kumar and Hemal Kothari, respectively.