Kathmandu — The cast reshuffle in Paanch Pandav following the removal of actor Sagar Lamsal "Bale" has been resolved. Actor Sushil Sitaula has officially been signed to fill the vacancy, stepping into one of the five central Pandava roles in the film currently in production.
Sitaula joins the project at a late stage of the shoot, inheriting a role that required immediate integration with an already established ensemble. The production team confirmed his addition without delay.
The circumstances surrounding his casting are well known. Lamsal was removed from the film after a Nepali woman based in the United States publicly accused him of rape on social media. The production company Kali Rani Films acted swiftly, cancelling his contract and committing to reshoot all his scenes at significant financial cost. Lamsal was subsequently arrested by police on charges of misconduct, and has since been released on bail pending further proceedings.
With Sushil Sitaula now in place, the film's cast stands as follows: Haribhansa Acharya, Jitu Nepal, Aryan Sigdel, Mahesh Tripathi, and Sushil Sitaula in the five central roles, with Deepashree Niraula, Sarita Giri, Binod Neupane, Rama Thapalia, Prashant Tamrakar, and Eva Giri, among others, in the supporting cast.
Directed by Basanta Niraula with story and screenplay by Sushil Poudel, the film uses the Mahabharata's five Pandava brothers as a symbolic framework to tell a contemporary Nepali social drama.