Remember Mahira Khan, the gorgeous Pakistani actress, who debuted in Bollywood opposite Shah Rukh Khan in the 2017 actioner Raees? The story goes her name was suggested to Rahul Dholakia by SRK’s mother-in-law Savita Chhibber when the director was searching for an actress worthy of being cast alongside the Bollywood superstar.
 
Dholakia and Raees’ casting director Honey Trehan were keen on an actress who was fluent in Hindi and Urdu and fit into the setting of an innocent 1980s Muslim girl. Deepika Padukone, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Anushka Sharma were names that came to mind but either didn’t fit their criteria or were too expensive. Also, SRK was in his 50s and they wanted an actress in her 30s for the role. Katrina Kaif and Sonam Kapoor were other possibilities. 
 
That’s when Gauri Khan’s mother, who had seen Mahira in some Pakistani TV show, suggested the actress to Dholakia. As luck would have it, Mahira was in Mumbai on some promotional work. Honey brought her to the co-producer Excel Entertainment’s office where she auditioned for Dholakia. The director later exuberantly declared, “I have found my Aasiya (Mahira’s character) for Raees!” Unfortunately, that was the only Bollywood film that Mahira did. Tension between India and Pakistan led to a ban on all actors from the neighbouring country working here thereafter.