The role was essayed by Tamil actor Prasanna in the original film.
The Bollywood remake is being directed by Susi Ganeshan. The film stars Viineet Kumar Singh and Urvashi Rautela, and has already gone on floors with the lead cast facing the camera in Varanasi.
Akshay has joined the cast as the negative lead for a face-off with Viineet Singh, who has the starring role on the film. Viineet is best recalled for his starring role in Anurag Kashyap's "Mukkabaaz", and was recently seen in the Diwali release, "Saand Ki Aankh".
The yet-untitled Bollywood remake will be widely shot across Varanasi and Lucknow.
"Akshay fits the bill perfectly. He has a very interesting character in the film and has crucial scenes with Viineet. I'm really happy that the casting process worked out smoothly and I have a talented cast and crew working with me. The shoot so far has been hectic and mostly at night. Akshay's scenes will be shot later this month," director Susi Ganesan said in a statement.
He added: "The script for the Hindi remake has been reworked to appeal to the pan-India audience, but this subject is absolutely universal. I'm sure people from all over the world can relate to it".
The film will be bankrolled by Kannada producer Ramesh Reddy.
( With inputs from IANS )