What’s been the experience like so far shooting for Lion?
Garth (Davis) is a very special director. He has a very special way of approaching a film, giving individual attention to each of his actors. The way he shoots… his sense of geography… his style of shooting is very unique. He’s a dream to work with. This project is very special for me because my character is actually not present in the book (A Long Way Home). He actually wrote this role for me (smiles). I was shooting in Sydney for this film called UnIndian and I got this email from Garth saying: ‘Nawaz (Nawazuddin Siddiqui) and you… I want you both in my film and I have written a role for you’. I was like: ‘Okay… wow!’ (Laughs) I read the script and my role and Garth was right when he said that I haven’t played something like this before.
Your character is pretty hush-hush…
All I can tell you is that my part is a very crucial turning point in the film. Beyond that, I can’t say anything more! (Laughs) She’s very integral to the story and I was floored by the fact that he actually wrote a role for me. The scene that I was shooting now is where I meet Saroo for the first time when he’s just landed from Madhya Pradesh and he’s wandering the streets of Howrah and discovering a whole new world. I love working with kids and this kid (Sunny) is amazing (smiles).
Were you aware of Saroo Brierley and his story before you were offered the film?
Yes, I was. I was fascinated by the fact that all these various people come into Saroo’s life at different stages and they make a shift in his life. Then 25 years later, he retraces his steps to his mother. It’s such a poignant and compelling story.
I met Saroo while he was in Calcutta for the shoot a few days ago… wonderful person… and what a life! You live a certain life and then you discover that you actually come from somewhere else. You want to revisit it, but you can’t go back to it fully. It’s such a complicated situation.
We all go through it in some form or the other… as a child I would visit my grandmother in Barrackpore. She died when I was pretty young and since then, we don’t visit Barrackpore at all and when I come to Calcutta, it’s only for work as it is now. I always think I will go back there, but it doesn’t happen. It’s such a vivid memory… so much nostalgia. And this film is all about that… all about nostalgia… being torn between the past and present.
What else are you working on?
I just finished UnIndian, which is a romantic comedy with (cricketer) Brett Lee. He’s really quirky and his sense of humour is fantastic. He’s a great guy. Then I just finished a film called Parched, produced by Ajay Devgn. It’s a woman-centric film. Then I am working with Ananth Mahadevan in Rough Book where I play this woman who fights against corruption in the education system. I am really enjoying my work a lot now because finally roles are being written for women. Both Parched and Rough Book are woman-centric and even Lion, though it’s Saroo’s story, has very strong women characters.
