Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has compared his latest role in Manjhi, the Mountain Man to his career in the film industry.
“I struggled for 15 years before I tasted success so I relate to Dasrath Manjhi’s passion and madness,” said the Indian National Award winner on Monday at a private screening of the film in Dubai. “He spent 22 years breaking a mountain to cut a road for his village using only a hammer and a chisel. That’s crazy. I had the same madness for acting.”
Manjhi, from a remote village in Bihar, India, took it upon himself to carve a path through a hill and shorten travel time between his village and the next town.
The mission, which took him more than two decades, began after his wife died because they couldn’t get her to the nearest hospital in time following a fall. When Manjhi died in 2007, he was honoured with a state funeral.
Siddiqi, who’s now known for his roles in films such as The Lunchbox, Gangs of Wasseypur and Badlapur, struggled for many years before finding his break in the industry.
“I don’t think I will be capable of doing such a thing for love,” he said, jokingly.
The film is directed by Ketan Mehta, who’s already helmed two biopics: Sardar (1993) and Mangal Pandey: The Rising (2005).
“It’s an inspiring story and it had to be told,” he told tabloid!. “And it’s something that anyone can relate to: It’s about sacrifice, about love, about keeping at something against all odds and about being the change you want to be.”
The film has been exclusively brought to the region by telecom operator etisalat for its eLife subscribers. Local distributors have said it’s unlikely to get a cinema release in the UAE.
Catch the full interview with Siddiqi and Mehta in tabloid! soon.
