Nawazuddin Siddiqui, the character actor
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui gets candid on his movies and more on his trip to Bengaluru
By : namita gupta
Update: 2015-08-09 23:56 GMT
From being an actor who no one took notice of to standing on his own as a versatile performer, Nawazuddin Siddiqui gets candid on the whole gamut of roles he’s been in and his love for Bengaluru. The talented actor who has made his mark in action, comedy, adventure, horror, romance, thriller, suspense and drama was in the city on Saturday to promote his upcoming film Manjhi - The Mountain Man with his co-star Radhika Apte and director Ketan Mehta.
Talking of the Indian biopic based film, Nawaz reveals, “It’s based on the life of Dashrath Manjhi, who was known as the Mountain Man and lived in Gehlaur village, near Gaya, in Bihar. It isn’t just a film that one should watch for entertainment, but it has a message for the youth. These days youngsters don’t believe in such deep love. It’s a true story and I feel everyone should know of this superman from our Indian history. It’s been the most challenging role that I’ve played so far.”
Getting into the shoes of Dashrath, who broke a mountain and was at it for 22 years, wasn’t easy. I was moved to know how one person can be so passionately in love. Ketan Mehta is known for his romantic movies, and here he has created a classic with great aesthetic sense. It is almost poetic. As Radhika Apte is also a theatre actor, one can witness a great depth in our romantic scenes.”
Hailing from a family of farmers from the Budhana village in Uttar Pradesh, Nawaz seems at ease when we shift from English to Hindi and gets candid. The National School of Drama graduate who has also worked as a watchman to sustain a living, states, “After my education I moved to Delhi and was part of a theatre group, before making my move to Mumbai.” Talking of his Bengaluru connection, he states, “I keep coming to Bengaluru often and have many friends here who are from the theatre background. I’d also performed at Ranga Shankara a few years back.”
He’s not your quintessential hero and doesn’t rest his laurels on a great physique or looks. It’s his acting talent that sets him apart from the many others. After the success of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, we had to ask him of his equation with Salman Khan. “I spent over three months with Salman Khan for the making of Bajrangi and being with someone for so long, it’s natural to have a great bonding. We used to joke a lot and had a lot of fun together,” says the actor who was noticed for his acting prowess in Peepli [Live], Badlapur, Gangs Of Wasseypur, Kahaani, The Lunchbox, Kick and many others. Of his future projects, he signs off saying, “I’ve just shot a few scenes with Shah Rukh Khan for Raees. There’s a lot more of the film to be shot and after the release of Manjhi, I will get back to them.”