Suniel Shetty says Raghavan from Main Hoon Na never felt like a negative role: ‘Jo deshbhakt hai, wo villain ho hi nahi sakta'

Indian Express

29-04-2025

Ever since the Pahalgam terror attack that has rocked the nation, a section of the internet has been insisting how Suniel Shetty 's character Raghavan from Farah Khan's 2004 blockbuster Main Hoon Na wasn't a villain.
Shetty played a former Indian Army officer who's expelled from the forces after he kills a bunch of Pakistanis who crossed the Line of Control on the assumption that they were Pakistani spies. He builds his own army to hamper Project Milaap, an initiative by the Government of India to release Pakistani prisoners. Later, it's revealed that his agenda was also personal, as his son was killed in Kashmir and his body was never returned to his family by the Pakistani Army.
'Jo deshbhakt hai, wo villain toh ho hi nahi sakta (If he's a patriot, he can't be a villain),' said Suniel Shetty emphatically at the trailer launch of his new period action drama Kesari Veer. 'Raghavan was negative according to the script. But when I heard the narration, I said yes within two minutes. And I still remember Farah asking me if I'm sure because it's a negative role,' recalled Shetty.
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The role of Raghavan was famously rejected by a number of seasoned actors, including Nana Patekar and Kamal Haasan. 'How's it negative? Our enemy will remain the same. My son was killed on the other side of the border. I just wanted them to give his body back, but they weren't ready. Toh dushmani double hi ho jaegi na? (Then the enmity will grow twice as much, right?),' said Shetty.
He claimed that his role of a warrior in Kesari Veer is an extension of his 'patriotic' characters from JP Dutta's 1997 war drama Border, Harry Baweja's 2003 action thriller Qayamat: City Under Threat, and Main Hoon Na. Kesari Veer revolves around Hamirji Gohil (played by Sooraj Pancholi) who fought against the Tughlaq Empire and saved the destruction of the Somnath Temple.
'It shows what the Sanatan Dharma is all about. What do we believe in? What have been trying to say, and what are we still trying to tell the world? Who are we, and where do we come from? The oldest, the richest, and definitely the best. Like I've always said, dharma, karma and seva is all that we believe in, and that's what this film is about,' added Shetty. The actor said he's glad that movies are now being made on 'our own heroes' instead of Aurangzeb or Akbar who have dominated history lessons in school textbooks for years.
Suniel Shetty expressed his gratitude to Panorama Studios for backing Kesari Veer, despite the fact that its cast is not the most commercially viable. When asked why a patriotic film like Kesari 2: The Untold Story of Jallianwala Bagh, led by his contemporary Akshay Kumar, is getting backing easily, and not his own, Shetty rejected any comparison with his Dhadkan co-star. 'I'm not talking about Akshay's films. He's a superstar. I'm not. My last few films haven't worked. They've received a lot of love but haven't sold tickets. Maybe I'm one of those that the audience loves to watch, but only for free,' quipped Suniel.
When asked if he and Kumar would ever team up for a patriotic film, Shetty said Priyadarshan's upcoming comedy Hera Pheri 3 is that film. It's the threequel to their hit 2000 film Hera Pheri. 'It's a deshbhakti film. The problem with today's kids is that they're not mentally happy. Hera Pheri is for you to be mentally happy and believe that anything and everything in our nation is extraordinary. It's the best! We laugh and make others laugh, even in poverty,' said Shetty. Hera Pheri 3 will reunite Kumar, Shetty, and Paresh Rawal, and is slated to release in cinemas next year.
Meanwhile, Kesari Veer, helmed by Prince Dhiman, is slated to release in cinemas on May 16.