Nawazuddin Siddiqui says he 'lived with trans people' to prepare for role in 'Haddi'

Nawazuddin Siddiqui surprised his fans earlier this year with a portrait of his look from the upcoming film Haddi. Essaying the role of a transgender, the actor has now opened up about how he actually lived with all the trans people working in the film to prepare for the role.

In a conversation with News18 about how he prepared for his role in Haddi, Siddiqui added that the film doesn’t just see him as a trans person but also hosts a total of 20 to 25 trans people working with him and while spending time with them, he got to witness another perspective of life through their lens. “I’m working with a lot of trans people in Haddi. I was in an environment with many of them. Their way of looking at the world is completely different. That was really interesting. I learned so much about their journeys.”

He added, “I don’t want my character to look like a caricature. I want to feel the character in my bones rather than just enact the part. And that is why I decided to stay with them (trans people). I’m looking forward to seeing how it shapes up eventually.”

In the same interview, he went on to clarify how the audience should not expect his role in Haddi to be similar to his portrayal of Laila Saran in Heropanti 2. “In Heropanti 2, I played a man with feminine qualities, not a trans person. There’s a difference and I hope people understand that,” he concluded.

Co-written by Akshat Ajay Sharma and Adamya Bhalla, Haddi is also directed by the former. The film is slated to release next year. Earlier, when the first look of Haddi was revealed, social media users commented on how Siddiqui looked like actor Archana Puran Singh. However, now, they’ve made comparisons to his latest transformation with Kajol, Priyanka Chopra and Raveena Tandon.

On the work front, Siddiqui was last seen in the Tiger Shroff and Tara Sutaria-starrer Heropanti 2. Apart from Haddi, he will next be seen in Tiku Weds Sheru and Bole Chudiya.