Hyderabadi Zeeshan Janbaz has landed himself a role in Zee TV’s new show Amma, that explores the life of a lady don.
“Amma is loosely based on Jenabai’s life… the lead role is being played by Urvashi Sharma. Jenabai would advise Haji Mastan and Dawood Ibrahim. It is not a saas-bahu serial and is quite short, only 52 episodes. I am sure audiences will like a fresh script on TV,” says the 25-year old Zeeshan, adding, “I play a right-hand man to Haider, a character that’s again loosely based on Haji Mastan, and is being played by Nawab Shah.”
Besides acting, Zeeshan has also helped cast around 70 people for various roles on this TV show. Talking about how he landed the role, he says, “My elder brother Aziz Naser, who works in Hyderabadi movies, is friends with one of the producers, Farhan Zamma. Farhan discussed the project with my brother, who in turn asked me to help them. I had never cast anyone for any role, this was my first such experience. I ended up casting around 70 people. For my role too, I didn’t have to give any audition. They just asked me to stay along and help them. I even helped them get a director of photography, Murali Krishna,” says Zeeshan, who has worked as associate director for many movies including the Parineeti Chopra-starrer Daawat-e-Ishq.
The show was being shot in Hyderabad at Ramoji Film City till recently. Two schedules have already been completed and Zeeshan will travel to Mumbai to join the next schedule from July 10.
He continues, “I speak Hyderabadi on this show. The writer Alok Upadhyay told me that it suited me and asked me to speak in Dakhini. Everyone on the sets was fascinated by it. Aman Verma, Nawab Shah and Urvashi would ask me to teach them the accent since they liked it so much.
“People on the sets here would indulge in Hyderabadi biryani and not many had explored the other famous Hyderabadi dish, haleem. All of them absolutely loved it when I brought it for them.”
