Sriram Raghavan, known as the master of thrillers with films such as Johnny Gaddaar, Badlapur, and Andhadhun to his credit, revealed that the story of Saif Ali Khan and Urmila Matondkar-starrer Ek Haseena Thi came to him after he lost the chance to direct Ab Tak Chhappan headlined by Nana Patekar.