Abhay Deol will surprise as moustachioed South Indian, says director

Dibakar Banerjee has said that Abhay Deol has delivered a confident performance playing a South Indian role in Shanghai.

The actor - a member of the Punjabi Deol acting dynasty - has typically played North Indian characters throughout his career.

"Who'd have imagined Abhay playing a South Indian, sporting a moustache?" said the director.

Deol had previously collaborated with the filmmaker on one of his most commercially successful projects.

The star said: "Dibakar is one of the finest directors. I had the opportunity to work with him in Oye Lucky Lucky Oye. I love the way he creates his own world through his scripts. He has a brilliant way of telling stories."

The director also praised actor Emraan Hashmi for moving away from his conventional romantic image.

"Besides these two, I also think two other actors who are brilliant are Bengal's superstar Prosenjit, and Kalki Koechlin," he added.

Koechlin joined the project after Katrina Kaif exited the film.

Payal Rohatgi made a complaint against the director after being turned down for a role in the production.

Hindi political thriller Shanghai will release on June 8.