Bollywood comedy Freaky Ali compelled actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui to step out of his comfort zone. He knew he had the potential to nail the comic scenes, but it was the prospect of dancing on the big screen that made him nervous. It wasn’t a pretty picture, he knew.
“There were these mental blocks and I had the feeling that I could never dance … In my head, I believed even though I am an actor, there was no need to dance. That’s not me,” said Siddiqui in an interview with tabloid! in Dubai. He was wrong.
Freaky Ali presented a series of firsts for the actor and took him to spaces that he never thought he would visit. After some serious dance rehearsals, Siddiqui even began to enjoy the moves.
In this production, backed by Salman Khan and his brothers Sohail and Arbaaz, the self-made actor learnt not just to dance but also to play golf.
Freaky Ali, directed by Sohail Khan, is a comedy of errors that springs up when uncouth extortionist Ali, played by Siddiqui, is discovered by a golfer and hailed as a golf genius. Ali’s unusually sharp at putting little balls into tiny holes.
“I always thought golf was a game reserved for the rich and the elite… But it’s a misconception. It’s a highly technical game and it’s a game that you can play and master alone. You require sharp skills for it and you can play the game alone,” said Siddiqui, speaking in a mixture of Hindi and English.
Siddiqui hails from a farming family and his success story in Bollywood is the stuff of legend. From working as a watchman to being hired as a chemist, Siddiqui has struggled his way to the top. He began his career by devouring the rejects of other actors in a two-bit roles. But he stepped up his game in films such as the morbid psychological thriller Raman Raghav 2.0 and Salman Khan blockbuster Kick.
“I feel blessed today because I am in a film produced by Salman Khan and am playing a good role. He has sustained his position for the last 30 years and that’s extremely fascinating. Many actors come and disappear into oblivion. But not Salman Khan,” said Siddiqui.
During the recent press junket, the crew of Freaky Ali were naturally obsequious around Salman, who’s known to have immense clout among his fans and family.
While model-turned-actor Jaz Arora — who plays a snobby golfer — calls ‘bhai’ (bro, as Salman is popularly known) an admirable icon, Arbaaz, who plays Siddiqui’s friend in the comedy, claims that it was not his relationship with his brother that helped him get the acting job.
“Just because I am family, it’s not a given that I will be there in a film. Sohail [the film’s director and also his brother] believed that I could play Maqsood, Ali’s friend, convincingly. I can vouch for the fact that if Jaz [Arora] had not said yes, Sohail would have pursued him for the longest time,” said Arbaaz.
The trailers show Ali’s accidental shot at instant fame and how his new colleagues on the field snub him relentlessly.
Arora leads the bully pack. He plays a flamboyant golfer who doesn’t have any respect for Ali or his golfing talents.
“My character thinks no end of himself … Before I memorised my lines, I memorised the other actor’s lines too, because we need to play off each other,” said Arora.
Arbaaz describes this film as a situational comedy that doesn’t try too hard either.
“I can vouch for the fact that the film is better than the trailer. It’s a fun, light-hearted comedy … It’s a situational comedy. Imagine your boss is angry and on his way out, he slips on a banana peel. You don’t know whether you should laugh or help. It’s a fun, light-hearted comedy.”
