Lalit Prabhakar used YouTube and photos to transform into Kasab for Prahaar

Lalit Prabhakar reveals how watching a single YouTube video and studying two photographs helped him transform into Ajmal Kasab for Rajkummar Rao’s Prahaar (Image Credits Instagram)

Lalit Prabhakar has opened up about preparing to play 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks convict Ajmal Kasab in ‘Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam’, headlined by

Rajkummar Rao

. The actor revealed that conversations with director

Avinash Arun

, studying publicly available photographs and watching a single YouTube video of Kasab helped shape his performance.

He also explained why understanding the character’s psychology and getting the dialect and tone right were crucial to bringing the role to the screen.

Lalit Prabhakar on how Avinash Arun’s vision shaped his portrayal of Ajmal Kasab

Prabhakar knew the role offered him an opportunity to explore unfamiliar territory when he was asked to audition for Kasab. According to the actor, it took just two takes for Arun to feel that he had found the right person for the part. However, preparing for the character required considerably more work.Explaining the director’s approach, Prabhakar said to Mid Day, “I spent time with Avinash sir as he expressed his approach towards the character, how he wanted to humanise it, and didn’t want to [adopt] the melodramatic, filmy style. He believed Kasab’s psyche should be our focus. What exactly does it mean to be brainwashed? If a person has killed so many people and is ready to die, how would his eyes and expressions be?”The actor’s preparation centred on understanding the psychology behind the character rather than relying on dramatic mannerisms.

Arun wanted the portrayal to focus on Kasab’s mindset, expressions and behaviour, allowing the performance to remain grounded rather than veering into a conventional, exaggerated depiction.

Lalit Prabhakar reveals how one YouTube video helped him prepare for ‘Prahaar’

Prabhakar also researched the case by reading 26/11 Kasab Ani Me, a book by Ramesh Mahale, the chief investigating officer of the Mumbai terror attacks. He supplemented his reading with the limited visual material of Kasab available publicly.“There’s only one video of Kasab available on YouTube. That’s all I could watch. I studied his two-three photos that are in public domain. The main task was [perfecting] the dialect and tone,” the actor said.The limited availability of footage meant that Prabhakar had to pay close attention to the material he could access. He focused particularly on reproducing Kasab’s speech patterns and tone, while also considering the character’s expressions and psychological state.

About ‘Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam’

Directed by Avinash Arun, ‘Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam’ revisits the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks and the legal proceedings that followed, focusing on public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam’s role in the case against Kasab.Rajkummar Rao plays Nikam, while Prabhakar portrays Kasab. The film also features Wamiqa Gabbi, Jaideep Ahlawat, Sikandar Kher and Ashish Vidyarthi in key roles. The courtroom drama brings the prosecution and trial into focus, with the confrontation between Nikam and Kasab forming a central part of the narrative.With respect to the film's box office performance, by Day 10, the film's total domestic earnings to stood at Rs. 20.10 crore net and Rs. 23.93 crore gross. Internationally, its overall worldwide gross stood at Rs. 26.78 crore.

Lalit Prabhakar’s upcoming projects

Following his appearance in ‘Prahaar’, Prabhakar has several projects in different stages of development. He is set to portray poet and Dalit Panther co-founder Namdeo Dhasal in the biopic ‘Dhasal’, with music by Ilaiyaraaja.