Dangal | Updates and Discussion Thread - Page 48

Aamir Khan's Dangal releases this Christmas, but what draws attention to the film is the two girls"Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra"who play wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat's daughters, Geeta and Babita Kumari Phogat. Like Aamir, the girls have gone in for complete transformation for the movie; they were trained in wrestling and chopped their tresses.

Fatima and Sanya are not new to the camera. Fatima started her career as a child artiste in Kamal Haasan's Chachi 420 when she was five years old. Now 24, she is now looking forward to Dangal. Sanya is from Delhi and has modelled for several commercials. "I love my short hair now," says Fatima. Sanya adds, "I have had curly hair all my life, so my short hair is much more comfortable."

They say working with Aamir has been enjoyable. "It was not easy. We went through five to six audition rounds and were so tired. We waited with bated breath after every audition to be selected," says Fatima. "Other girls were auditioning for the role and we would think we have lost to them," adds Sanya. "It was the most difficult time we faced. Once we got to know that we had been selected, we were overjoyed."

They were not intimidated or star-struck by Aamir when they first met him on the sets of Dangal. "We were surprised when we met Aamir for the first time. He had put on so much weight. He was like a cute, large teddy bear," says Fatima. Sanya chips in: "There was no persona of Aamir on the sets. We had imagined him as the hero of PK or Dhoom, but here he was so different. He did not come with the baggage of being a star on the sets."

The girls say they were more star-struck when they met the real wrestlers, Geeta and Babita Kumari Phogat. "I kept nudging Sanya. We were at loss for words. Meeting the world champions who had brought gold medals home was awe-inspiring. They are world champions, what more can one say," says an excited Sanya.
About shooting with Mr Perfectionist, Fatima says, "We were nervous on the first day, but he made us feel comfortable and kept meeting us during our training. We learnt a lot from him by just observing him on the sets. He never got angry and always supported us. He would ask if we had any queries. He is very passionate about his work. He is a superstar and he doesn't need to work so hard, but he tries to understand the characters."

If the trailer and the songs from the Aamir Khan-starrer Dangal have astonished you, here's something that will catch you off guard.

The actor is all set to go to India's one of the best Akharas. The Akhara in Kolhapur, that has added to Maharashtra's respect by delivering one of the best pehelwaans to the country, is impressed with Aamir's dedication in the film to gain weight and get back in shape.

Veteran wrestler Rustame-Hind Dadu Chaugle, who heads Motibagh Akhara in Kolhapur will host the actor this Monday.

The invitation letter reads, "We are touched by the idea of getting kushti to mainstream through the movie and inspiring the young generation to indulge in the sport. We respect Aamir and want to honour him."

Dadu's son Vinod Choughle, also a pehlwaan, said, "The trailer of Dangal is really impressive." He further added, "My father knows Mahavir Phogat and we have always been inspired by his work and admire him. Aamir has done a brilliant job and looks like an actual wrestler in the film." He adds that preparations to felicitate the actor are underway."

The actor also will be a part of milk drinking competition.

Vinod Choughle says, "It is gracious of him to accept our invitation. Our pehelwaans are going to showcase their skills before him and we would love it if he joins us for a fun round of kushti. We also plan to challenge him to a milk drinking competition. So, we hope he is ready to face the test."

A source close to the actor revealed that it is a "privilege" for Aamir to be honoured by one of the most prestigious and traditional akharas of India.

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari, Dangal is slated to release on December 23, 2016.

Happy and proud to be associated with #Dangal for Hyderabad promotions, which will take place today

Agle shukravaar hai #Dangalvaar #Dangal in cinemas this Friday. @aamir_khan @niteshtiwari22

Aamir Khan and director Nitesh Tiwari indulge in some kite-fying on the sets

Biopics are a difficult genre in Bollywood and when you have an actor like Aamir Khan in your film the stakes are even higher. Nitesh Tiwari's Dangal is based on the life of Haryanvi wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat and his daughters, Geeta and Babita. An adman-turned-filmmaker, Tiwari had previously directed Chillar Party (2011) and Bhootnath Returns (2014). He reveals what appealed to him about making a biopic, working with Aamir and the challenges he faced.

After living the film for more than three years, are you feeling any withdrawal symptoms?
Not really. That's because we finished the film long back. We had enough time to make the necessary changes to edit or add things and I am satisfied with the final product. I always feel when you have more options; you are able to pick the best out of it and that's what we have done. I remember when we finished writing the final draft; I told my team that if we can achieve 80 per cent of what we have written, I think we will have a great film in our hand.

Have you achieved it?
I don't want to sound ambitious or arrogant, but I feel we have. I am more excited than nervous, because the audience has loved whatever they have seen so far. Also, I was not desperate to make Dangal. This is a film which I might not be able to recreate in my entire life. I don't know if I'd be able to write anything better than this film.

(From left) Nitesh Tiwari, Babita and Geeta Phogat, Aamir Khan and Mahavir Phogat

Disney approached you with the idea of Dangal. Had you heard about Mahavir Phogat earlier?
I hadn't heard of Mahavir Phogat or his daughters, Geeta and Babita. Two friends from Disney narrated the idea to me briefly. They asked me if I'd be interested in writing the story of a man who, in a place like Haryana, trained his daughters to become world-class wrestlers against all odds.

The basic premise was mouth-watering and was good enough for me to get excited. I felt this story deserved to be told. I immediately said yes and decided to delve deeper into it.

Did you bring up Aamir's name? How did he come on board?
After finishing the final draft, Disney gave me a hypothetical situation to choose an actor I would want in Dangal. The first name that came to my mind was Aamir Khan's. There were a lot of factors involved because of the kind of commitment required for the role. I narrated the script for three hours in the same room that we are sitting today. He loved the script. What really intrigued him was that although the script was emotional; there was a layer of humour. But he wasn't sure when he would be able to do the film. So he gave us the option of going ahead with any other actor. I decided and told him that I was ready to wait for him for however long it took.

You said Aamir was intrigued by the comic touches. Was it a conscious decision to incorporate that in the film?
Dangal's story is serious and biopics tend to get heavy. We didn't want the audience to be layered with a lot of rona-dhona. So, we decided that although the message will be serious, the treatment will be light-hearted and that was the biggest challenge.

At the same time, was it difficult to maintain a balance between keeping things authentic and adding fiction?
Yes, it was. Whenever you are telling a biopic it is always important for the writer not to be too real or take too much cinematic liberties. The principal characters in Dangal " Mahavir Singh Phogat and his daughters, Geeta and Babita, have remained absolutely intact, but we've created characters around them to give a flavour to the story and make the film more commercial.

Vivek Tiwari

Coming to the casting of Geeta and Babita, it was earlier decided that you will cast real wrestlers, but the idea was later dropped and you went ahead with actors.
We had discussed two options. Either we cast wrestlers and teach them acting or we cast actors and teach them wrestling. We auditioned a lot of young female wrestlers, but somehow we were never convinced. Dangal is not just a film about wrestling, it's an emotional journey of a father and his two daughters and we wanted that emotion to come through. Finally, we realised it would be easier to teach actors how to wrestle. But let me tell you that too wasn't an easy process. We auditioned more than 10,000 girls. Apart from being good actors, there were a lot of parameters. The girls had to look like Aamir's daughters. The younger ones had to look like the older ones. After several rounds of auditioning and shortlisting, we checked their medical history and also consulted dieticians to see if they could bulk up and wrestle. We also met gym trainers to see if the girls were athletic and would easily do weights. After months of tedious process, the final 10 shortlisted girls were made to train under our wrestling coach Kripa Shankarji to see if they could achieve what we wanted in about eight to 10 months. The toughest part was that the girls had to cut their hair, so many weren't sure about that (laughs). It was a very rigorous regime.

There is always a lot of buzz about Aamir Khan's excessive interference in the films he does. How much is it true?
He is one of the most easy-going actors to work with. In fact, Aamir takes a lot of pressure off the director. Apart from acting he has been an assistant director, producer and a director so he knows his work well. He understands the creative process and is knows where to draw the line. He is a superstar and his name is associated with the film so it is obvious that whenever he feels he should give an opinion, he will, but will never insist you to follow it. He gives a lot of respect to his writers and directors. I must say his suggestions always help the film.

5 din. Aur phir Dangal shuru. #Dangal in cinemas this Friday. @aamir_khan @niteshtiwari22

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