Aamir wanted to launch son Junaid with 'Laal Singh Chaddha'
What's the story
Bollywood actor Aamir Khan's highly-anticipated film Laal Singh Chaddha is scheduled to release on August 11.
It is an adaptation of Hollywood star Tom Hanks's 1994 film Forrest Gump.
During a recent media event, Khan was asked if it was Hanks's performance that inspired him to play the titular role in it.
However, Mr. Perfectionist responded with a surprising answer.
Read on for more.
Quote
Khan: 'We never sat and watched the original'
Khan spoke about Hanks's film and said, "I have seen Forrest Gump long back but when the script came to me, that became my project. We never sat and watched the original."
"During the shoot, we did see a few scenes for reference but never the whole film. However, a strange thing did happen when we were trying to make the film," he added.
Information
Khan asked Advait Chandan to shoot test scenes with son
Separately, Khan also said while director Advait Chandan did a great job with Secret Superstar, Laal Singh Chaddha was a rather difficult project, and he wasn't sure if he could hand it over to him.
So, in the pre-production phase, Khan suggested Chandan build his own crew and shoot some test scenes with his son Junaid Khan, who had just returned from Los Angeles.
Reaction
This is how Khan reacted after watching son's test video
Khan said he and his ex-wife Kiran Rao watched the test video featuring Junaid and they were blown away by his performance.
"I knew mera chance gaya (my chance was gone). That innocence of Laal was out there while I would have to act it out."
"I showed the film to close to 100 people...98 felt that I should take him," Khan said.
Inspiration
Khan found his 'sur' because of his son
However, actor Atul Kulkarni—who is Laal Singh Chaddha's screenwriter—and Aditya Chopra were the only two people adamant about Khan essaying the titular role.
"They argued that the film was not plot-driven but rather episodic and thus a newcomer shouldn't do it. After long arguments, I finally bought their reasoning," said Khan.
He also mentioned he found the sur (mood) for Laal thanks to Junaid.