Ayushmann Khurrana on being Shivkar Bapuji Talpade in Hawaizaada and his wide-eyed disco dancer moment.
Kolkata: On the last Friday of January, Ayushmann Khurrana will visit us as Shivkar Bapuji Talpade — a scientist in British-era India said to have invented the world’s first unmanned aircraft much before ‘Fathers of Flying’ the Wright Brothers — in the ‘fictional biopic’ Hawaizaada. A t2 chat with the Vicky Donor man on film choices and box-office returns.
Were you aware of Shivkar Bapuji Talpade before you signed Hawaizaada?
I wasn’t, I wasn’t. In fact, after I signed the film, I mentioned Shivkar Talpade to a friend and he was like, ‘Of course I know this person. I have been wondering for years why no one has made a film on him because the masses need to know about Shivkar Talpade’. That kind of told me that I was right in signing the film just on the basis of a one-line narration that was given to me.
The hits for the trailer on YouTube have been amazing… the comments have been amazing. It’s kind of sparked off a debate among people about Shivkar Talpade. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi is talking about this man. Ramdev Baba has been posting pictures of Shivkar Talpade on his Facebook page. It’s created a buzz for sure. It’s a very interesting topic that we are making a film on.
Hawaizaada is being promoted as a ‘fictional biopic’ because the source material for Shivkar Talpade is very limited.