Pankaj Tripathi to reportedly play late Indian PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee in biopic

Actor may star in 'Main Rahoon Ya Na Rahoon, Yeh Desh Rehna Chahiye – Atal'

A film based on former Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was announced a few days back. Creating a lot of buzz in the neighbouring country, the news led many to speculate who’d play the late Indian PM.  Makers, albeit, only revealed the film’s title, Main Rahoon Ya Na Rahoon, Yeh Desh Rehna Chahiye – Atal.

According to Pinkvilla, however, a source close to the makers has shared that Pankaj Tripathi is set to star in the biopic. "It is Pankaj Tripathi, who is all set to play the former Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee's role on the silver screen,” they alleged.

The film on Atal Bihari Vajpayee will be produced by Vinod Bhanushali, Sandeep Singh, Sam Khan, Kamlesh Bhanushali and Vishal Gurnani. It is scheduled to hit cinemas in 2023. The biopic will be released on Christmas, which also marks the 99^th birth anniversary of the late Indian PM. It was reported earlier that makers were scouting for an actor to portray the role Vajpayee in the movie, which is an adaptation of Ullekh NP’s book The Untold Vajpayee: Politician and Paradox. And it looks like they have finally someone who fits the bill.

Politics has been one of the most fascinating subjects for Indian cinema and that fascination inspired producers to make films like Rajneeti in the past too. Films like Accidental Prime Minister also saw the likes of Anupam Kher play former PM Manmohan Singh. While Nawazuddin Siddiqui played late Balasaheb Thackeray, Shiv Sena founder and politician.

Sarkar, Sarkar Raj and Sarkar 3, claimed to be influenced by The Godfather and partly based on the life of Thackeray, saw Amitabh Bachchan play Sarkar, thought to resemble Thackeray in various ways. And the neighbouring cinema has also seen Vivek Oberoi play current Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Actor Pankaj Tripathi, however, is known to have portrayed some of the most unconventional characters onscreen. He has been lauded for his fabulous performances and recently, also won an award in the Supporting Role (Male) category at the International Indian Film Academy Awards (IIFA) 2022 for his role in the film Ludo. And now, we can’t wait to see him as Vajpayee.

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