After two critically acclaimed films such as Barah Aana and Firaaq this year, Naseeruddin Shah will end his year with the forthcoming Bolo Raam.
A murder mystery directed by theatre actor Rakesh Chaturvedi ’Om’, the film also stars Om Puri and Padmini Kohlapure, marking the debut of Rishi Bhutani. The story revolves round a boy Raam Kaushik (Rishi) accused of his mother’s murder. Raam falls in to a state of shock, brief psychotic disorder, after his mother’s death and becomes silent, refusing to talk or react in any manner. The story unfolds as the investigating officer, Indrajeet Singh Rathi (Om Puri), consults a Psychiatrist Dr. N S Negi (Naseeruddin Shah) to determine Raam’s state of mind and the reason for his slience. Naseer speaks of his role saying, “I play a psychiatrist who is given the task of making Raam speak, so that the truth is unveiled. It is a very intense character, and I enjoyed working with Rakesh, who has been a great actor before he came to directing this film.”
On what made him take up the film and on the news of him not charging a penny for the role, the actor says, “I believe that scripts like Bolo Raam are very rare and they require a lot from an actor. I am sure that if I would have charged any money for the film, I won’t ever be able to deliver my best and it would have been an injustice to the film. I am glad that there were no monetary elements involved, which gives me an opportunity to say that I did this film from and for my heart. Yes, it is obvious that Padmini’s presence in the film is another reason which led me away from talking about any financials, because we had come together on screen after a span of 26 long years.” The actor teams up with Padmini after a long gap of time. The couple last acted in Wo Saat Din in 1983.
Director Rakesh Chaturvedi ’Om’ is in awe of Naseer and speaks of his kind gesture saying, “I think Naseerji is a great personality on- and as well off-screen. He is a great actor and a great human being as well. I have been doing theatre with him for years now, and in all these years, I always kept telling him that I would love to direct him in a film. It was on one random day when I narrated the script of Bolo Raam to him. He was so moved with the script that he said he was doing my film, and to relieve me of any problem, he said he was doing it for free. I can’t say how obliged I felt. I thank him from the bottom of my heart and can proudly say that he is the finest actor India has ever produced. I am sure people will love his performance in Bolo Raam too.”
The film also stars Rajpal Yadav, Govind Namdev and Manoj Pahwa in pivotal roles and releases on Dec 31st.
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