Actress Nandita Das says she is having a tough time in casting for the role of Shyam in her upcoming film “Manto“, which is based on the life of writer Saadat Hasan Manto.

Nawazuddin is playing the titular role but the actress-filmmaker faced issues while casting for Manto’s closest friend, Sunder Shyam Chadda.

In her latest article published in The Week, Nandita said she approached many young “stars” from the film industry to play ‘Shyam’ but everyone said no.

“…I thought that known young charming actors, wanting to play the layered character of Shyam, would be in abundance.

Intriguingly, all the ‘stars’ I approached said no without even reading the script or asking any questions about the role that was being offered.

“Their sole reason for declining was that Shyam would be seen as the ‘second lead’. As Nawazuddin Siddiqui, an accomplished actor, is playing Manto, I want to ensure that Shyam is no less,” Nandita wrote.

The actress, who made her directorial debut with “Firaaq,” said for actors road to stardom is only through playing the lead and be “heroic”.