How has your character received in ‘Sardar Udham’?
People have loved the film and the way Shoojit (Sarkar) sir has molded it in a completely unique way. For me, it was always going to be a special appearance, in terms of screen time, because the story focused on the story of the hustle. But it is loved by a lot of people! It is overwhelming to be a part of a film that leaves such an impact. It is an achievement in itself to be seen in such a great film with such a stellar performance by Vicky; I’ll pat my back.
How different was your look from your previous films…
As an actor, the look is something that is taken care of by the makeup and costume teams. I was just conscious of my role. I knew it was different from my previous work, so I had to make sure I did justice to it. I had to forget everything else that I had done earlier and just focus on the character. The character of Bhagat Singh was very realistic; He was a real human being with emotions, fun, fun, passion, love for the nation and its freedom. I had to make sure I used his vision in that sense. The only reference you have to these guys is from the visuals, but Shoojit wanted me to read about them, imagine their character, and not have any baggage from their previous portrayals. We created a real character without relying on any illustrations.
How did you prepare for the role?
When you have a good team, the work gets divided. We had a very clear vision of what we were trying to show. I guess we just needed to learn about these guys. With the kind of research material the team had with my personal work, I realized that we are about a lot more than they ever thought. It opened my thoughts and mind about these legends of modern history of India. Landing on his thoughts is different as we have also created our own thoughts about him from books, stories and much more.
Did you have any perceptions about Bhagat Singh that changed while doing research for the film?
My thoughts about Bhagat Singh were expanded during the course of the film. Apart from revolting against the British government, he had a lot of political and social ideas which probably not everyone knows. It told me a little more about these great people, how well-educated they were. The picture of the person shines and becomes real. My knowledge only grew, I would not say that it has changed.
You really need to connect with the character…
Of course, you need to join and that’s why reading about them helps. As I learned that he used to write a lot anonymously.
You are also the author…
(laughs) What he wrote was more about socio-political things, whereas mine was more about a personal-emotional story. They were young, idealistic and very intelligent people. The way you grow by reading his thoughts on society, public welfare, liberty and justice is quite an eye opener.
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