Satyagraha was like homecoming for Arjun

Actor finds film-maker’s set and cast to be like home.

MUMBAI:

Despite being immensely talented, actor Arjun Rampal is more than often seen playing character roles in multi-starrer movies. However, he seems to have gelled in well with what he is being offered and has made close associations in the industry. Having worked with director Prakash Jha in films like Raajneeti and Chakravyuh, the D Day actor says that working with the director and the star cast in Satyagraha was like “going back home”. 

“It was fantastic. This is Prakash’s most ambitious project. There is a wonderful star cast, all of whom I have worked with a lot. It was like going back home and having a good time,” said Rampal.

The nationalistic movie also features Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor, Manoj Bajpayee and Amrita Rao. Rampal said that he had to spend a lot of time with the other actors during the shooting of the film, which was a memorable experience.

“The film is quite intense... We spent a lot of time together, on and off set. We were in Bhopal for 60 days,” he said.

Jha approached Rampal for the film while shooting for their last movie together, Chakravyuh. “Prakash did not really have a character for me [at that time]. He was working on Chakravyuh and he was scripting Satyagraha. He told me if he gave me a part, would I do it? I said yes. Eventually, it became a full-fledged role and when I read the part, I really liked it,” said the model-turned-actor.

Rampal will be seen as a young and volatile person in the film, but his role will be different from what he played in Raajneeti.

“The character is different from what I played in Raajneeti, he is young and volatile but in a different way. He is not a selfish man nor does he come from a rich family. He is a guy who is from the grassroots. He is the muscle power of that campaign,” he said.

Satyagraha is slated for an August 30 release.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2013.

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