Irrfan Khan is Shoojit Sircar's Udham Singh

Filmmaker, who's been checking in with the ailing actor, intends to kick off the film by the year-end; plans to visit Irrfan next month.

Mirror (January 9, 2017) was the first to report that Shoojit Sircar had quietly started work on a film which revolved around the struggle for Independence and the long-forgotten martyr Udham Singh. At the time, he was scouting for an actor to play Udham, a role which spans 30-40 years.

Now, the filmmaker admits that he had approached Irrfan Khan for the part over a year ago and the excited actor had given him the nod. The National Award-winning actor's illness was as much a shock to Shoojit as other filmmakers, but he is determined to wait for his hero. "I've been speaking to both Irrfan and his wife (Sutapa Sikdar), he's responding well to the treatment and trying to cope with the knowledge that he's battling NeuroEndocrine tumour by treating the recuperation in Europe like a short and unexpected holiday. I'm planning to visit him next month. We hope to roll by the year-end, but will wait till Irrfan is ready to shoot, says Shoojit, admitting that Irrfan's name automatically crops up when he is working on projects because "he's one of our finest actors and a dear friend.

The Udham biopic was the first film Shoojit wanted to make when he moved to Mumbai and has lived with the subject for years. "In 1995, during my theatre days in Delhi, I would go with a group to Punjab which was just coming out of a period of turmoil, and sing songs on communal harmony. I visited Amritsar and Jallianwala Bagh then and was greatly inspired by the story of this fiery revolutionary who shot dead Sir Michael O'Dwyer, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab in British India, in London to avenge the massacre of 1919, he reminisces.


File photo of Udham Singh; Shoojit Sircar (right)

He rues that though after Bhagat Singh, Udham's daring and sacrifice marked a turning point in India's history and his vision for the country is still relevant, yet his name doesn't find mention in textbooks. "To relive Udham's journey, I need a performance with finesse and depth which Irrfan is capable of. Also, he's the only international actor we have today and I discovered to my delight that independently he knows a lot about the history of Punjab. It's easy working with an actor who's interested and involved, Shoojit says.

To relive Udham Singh's journey, I need a performance with finesse and depth which Irrfan is capable of

Shoojit Sircar