Akshay signed CC2C after seeing the film's poster

There is a story that goes behind Akshay giving a Thumbs Up to CHANDNI CHOWK TO CHINA. Though in principal, he was pretty much on board vis–a–vis doing the film, the clincher came in the form of the specially designed poster of the film that did the trick.

Confirms Rohan Sippy, 'Shridhar (Raghavan) – the writer and I were so clear that Akshay was the only choice for the part. We were so keen to have him on board that we actually created a poster with him in it to give him a feel for the film. I think the poster bowled him over so much that he wanted to sign on right away. In fact it is the same concept that we have used in the teaser poster of the film!'

Even otherwise, the story of the bumbling Sidhu, whose journey to China gives him an identity, a chance to believe in himself and save a village resonated somewhere with Akshay that made him even more keen to essay the part of Sidhu.

'I don't think we could have envisioned any other actor in the role of Sidhu. Akshay has breathed life into this role. People will feel sympathy when he is a fumbling Sidhu and will cheer when he beats up the bad guys. There are very few actors who can convince the audience to accept them as a simpleton and as a Kung Fu expert within the same movie', says Rohan in a delightful tone as he looks forward to the release of the film that takes place within three weeks from now.

'Beyond being an exceptionally versatile and professional actor, he is one of the very few actors in Bollywood who has the physique and agility to have carried off the tough demands of this role. He is a daredevil, he loves performing stunts and reveling when they are risky', adds Nikhil Advani.