 Tusshar Kapoor and Emraan Hashmi were next cast in lead roles . While it was known that Tusshar Kapoor would play the role of a script @-@ writer and Smitha 's love interest , the nature of Hashmi 's role was unknown for a while . The casting received praise from trade pundits , with Taran Adarsh commenting , " Known for engaging in interesting and unconventional casting in all its previous releases , Balaji has again tackled the unheard of , by casting Emraan Hashmi and Vidya Balan – two of the most successful stars of today – opposite each other in The Dirty Picture . The perfect combination of mass and class promises to make this controversial film yet another winner from the Balaji stable . " 
