Why her?” That was the question many viewers had after watching Kirti Kulhari in Badass Ravi Kumar’s trailer. Interestingly, the actor too had a similar question—“Why me?”—when actor-musician Himesh Reshammiya offered her a role in the Keith Gomes-directed spoof action comedy. After all, Badass Ravi Kumar was wildly different from the powerful stories, like Shaitaan (2011), Pink (2016) and Criminal Justice: Behind Closed Doors (2020), that Kulhari has leaned towards in her 15-year career. “I was shocked. But Himesh told me, ‘I need an actor for this role.’ I was flattered that he thought of me for his film,” she smiles. 

Kulhari laughs that her hairdo, a short bob at the time, was another reason why Reshammiya thought she would be the perfect fit to play a glamorous assassin. She recalls, “He said, ‘I really like your hairstyle. I want that look for the part.’”