Not Dhanush, but Ravi Teja was the first choice for starrer 'Sir', director Venky Atluri reveals

Dhanush made his Telugu debut with Venky Atluri's 'Sir' also called. 'Vaathi'. Recently the director shared that actor Ravi Teja was originally the first choice to play the lead role in his 2023 Telugu-Tamil bilingual hit.

The filmmaker made this revelation while shooting a promotional video for 'Mass Jathara' with Ravi Teja and co-director Bhanu Bogavarapu.

Ravi Teja's response to the 'Sir' offer

During the shoot, Venky recalled that he had initially pitched 'Sir' to Ravi Teja before approaching Dhanush. He said, "Actually, I pitched Sir to him first. He said, 'Venky, I'm a little busy. Will you be able to wait? If not, I will not force you to do so.' Within 2-3 months of that, I was able to bring Dhanush on board.

When I told Ravi anna this, he asked me not to think twice because he's a superb actor."Venky went on to reveal that Ravi Teja later called him after watching the film to share his thoughts. The director said, "Afterwards, anna called me and said the film was good. But I would not have played it the same way."

About 'Sir'

'Sir' starring Dhanush and Samyuktha turend out to be critical and commercial success. The film had the social commentary on the commercialization of education in India.

Venky's next with Suriya

Following the success of the Dhanush starrer, Venky delivered another hit in 2024 with 'Lucky Baskhar', a black comedy starring Dulquer Salmaan about financial scams. The director is now working on his next big project with Suriya, which is expected to go on floors soon.Meanwhile, Ravi Teja's action entertainer Mass Jathara, co-starring

Sreeleela

and Raashii Khanna in key role. The film is scheduled to hit theatres on October 31.