Acclaimed actress-filmmaker Nandita Das says actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui got into the character of late Urdu writer Saadat Hasan Manto for film “Manto” effortlessly and has done justice to it.
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“I always had Nawaz in mind while writing ‘Manto’. He has many traits that are similar to Manto – a deep sensitivity and intensity, anger, and a dry sense of humour. These innate qualities in Nawaz helped him transition into Manto on screen quite effortlessly,” Nandita said in a statement to IANS.
“I needed a brilliant actor to portray many contradictory emotions since Manto was a complex character. For instance, he was a person with moral courage, but was also scared of going to jail, confident but vulnerable, deeply sensitive yet very angry. You will know Nawaz’s range when you see ‘Manto’,” she added.
“Manto” follows the most tumultuous years in the life of iconoclastic writer Manto and those of the countries — India and Pakistan — which Manto inhabited and chronicled. The film stars Rasika Dugal as Manto’s wife and Tahir Raj Bhasin, Rishi Kapoor and Divya Dutta in key roles.
The actor, who garnered acclaim for his role in “Sacred Games”, will also be seen in Tannishtha Chatterjee’s directorial project tentatively titled “Rome Rome Mein”. He has also signed Debamitra Hassan’s “Motichoor Chaknachoor”, which also features Athiya Shetty.
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According to a source, “‘Motichoor Chaknachoor’ is a quirky wedding comedy. Nawazuddin’s character is quite crazy yet lovable and Debamitra strongly believes that only Nawazuddin can portray it convincingly. He is a brilliant actor who can effortlessly play any character with great A¿lan and make it look interesting and believable.”