Nikam backs Prahaar casting; lawyer says he was won over on set

Rajkummar Rao’s next release is ‘Prahaar: The Untold Story of Ujjwal Nikam’, in which he plays the former public prosecutor. Directed by Avinash Arun, the film is based on the life of Nikam, who represented the State in the high-profile case against 26/11 Mumbai attacks terrorist

Ajmal Kasab

Wamiqa Gabbi

appears as Nikam’s wife Jyoti, while Lalit Prabhakar plays Kasab.

The film arrives in theatres on Friday (October 16).

Ujjwal Nikam on not knowing Rajkummar Rao before ‘Prahaar’

In a conversation with NDTV, Ujjwal opened up about ‘Prahaar’, Rajkummar and his hopes for the film. Interestingly, he was not familiar with the actor at all until the director mentioned him. The veteran lawyer had never seen a single film by the National Award winner and knew nothing about his work.When director Avinash told Ujjwal that Rajkummar would be playing him in ‘Prahaar’, Nikam had just one question: “Avinash ji, who is this Rajkummar?” Arun then explained what a phenomenal performer the actor is.

Nikam later visited the set one day to watch the shoot and came away impressed after meeting Rajkummar, whom the eminent advocate found to be simple and grounded, with no starry airs. “He’s a real actor. I like his nature,” Nikam said, adding that he told Arun the director had picked a good actor to portray him on screen.The veteran lawyer was also keen to see how Rajkummar Rao had managed to bring his personality to the screen, from his voice to his nuances and quirks.

‘Prahaar’ is Rajkummar Rao’s latest biopic

‘Prahaar’ is the latest biopic in Rajkummar Rao’s filmography. He has previously played real people in ‘Shahid’, ‘Aligarh’, ‘Omerta’ and ‘Srikanth’ along with the web series ‘Bose: Dead/Alive’.

Rajkummar Rao’s next biopic ‘Dada’ on Sourav Ganguly

Meanwhile, Rajkummar Rao’s next biopic is ‘Dada’, based on Indian cricket legend Sourav Ganguly. Directed by Vikramaditya Motwane, the film is currently being shot, with the actor on set.