At the red carpet screening of Wazir, the cast and crew tell Riya Sharma that it has been over a decade since the film project began and how they had a chess expert on the set to maintain the continuity of the scenes
It was a night of shining stars at the special screening of the forthcoming action thriller, Wazir. Directed by Bejoy Nambiar and written by Abhijat Joshi and Vidhu Vinod Chopra, the movie is a joint production of Chopra and Rajkumar Hirani. Not only celebrities made their exclusive red carpet walk but dignitaries from the field of politics like the chief minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia, deputy CM, and designers from the fashion fraternity also made a ‘starry’ entry down the red carpet.
Ace designers and sister duo, Gauri and Nainika, looked chic in their leather jackets and knee length boots. They were later joined by the producer and writer of the movie, Chopra who reached the venue on time and managed to escape the paparazzi asking questions with ease. Though he chose not to answer any questions at first, he joined the media once they caught hold of the lead actor, Farhan Akhtar.
Dressed casually, Akhtar seemed quite comfortable in his denims and funky shoes. As he entered, he posed for the cameras looking as effortless as possible and obliged to all the questions that the media had for him.
“My kids would be two little wazirs of my life,” said the actor who is playing an ATS officer in the movie. As Big B plays a chessmaster in the movie, Akhtar was asked if he plays the game in real life, too. “I like to play it with my friends,” he said. The next moment, Chopra interrupted him and said, “He is the best. He is so good that you are going to love him in the movie. Ye bhot sharif ladka hai, bolta nahi hai, kamal ka kam kiya hai (he is a modest guy, doesn’t speak much but he has done a brilliant job in the movie).”
The project was started in 2004 and the movie is now releasing in 2016. Chopra seemed more than excited for this venture. “It feels great. Farhan has done a brilliant job and Bachchan sahab nailed it. So I don’t think we could have done better than this. May be, you don't know, but we have already started showing our film. Have you seen any film being shown on screen before four days,” he asked.
Joshi was all praises for Chopra and shared that he has learnt a lot from him. “This picture was written before lage Raho Munnabhai, 3 idiots and PK. And if I hadn’t written this movie in these four years, then I would have never been able to write it. I have learnt a lot from him (Chopra) and it matters to me a lot. First he said, ‘hit ho na ho,’ then he corrected himself ‘hit hoga hi.’ This is bigger than a hit — it is classic. I won’t tell you the genre but in its genre, this is unique. I can guarantee you that in India, under this genre, no film of this level has been made till now,” he seemed confident.
The producer and writer then were once again joined by the actor who shared that though he hasn’t played the game with his father but has played a few times with his friends. “We had a chess expert on sets because continuity of the game was very important. So, whenever we started playing, he used to keep a check of whether we were beginning from where we had ended. So, even if we wanted to play it after a scene got over, he would say, ‘Don’t touch this piece’ in a stern voice,” he laughed.
As Akhtar was being appreciated for his on-screen chemistry with his love-interest, Aditi Rao Hydari, she made a stunning entry looking breathtaking in peach sharara which looked like a long gown. Apparently, she had given a screen test before being finalised for the movie. “She gave a screen test and it was beautiful. She has performed with her eyes and when I saw that, I told Bejoy that she is the one,” said Chopra.
Hydari, on the other hand shared, “It is such a privileged to work on this project. I am not saying this because I am supposed to say all of this, but I really feel it. People should go and watch this movie, I am saying this from my ‘lovely eyes,’” she laughed.
photos Sanjeev Kumar