Actor Arshad Warsi, known for his impeccable comic timing on screen, will take on a serious role with the upcoming socio-political action-drama Bandaa Singh Chaudhary. The film is helmed by Abhishek Saxena (Phullu (2017)) and produced by Arbaaz Khan. Set in 1975, the trailer of the film shows Bandaa (Arshad), as a courageous man who falls in love with the character played by Meher Vij and how he is threatened by members of a community to leave his house. Bandaa stands firmly against the threats and picks up arms in a bid to save his family. Arshad says that he was really moved when he heard the story. “It is really painful when someone forces you to leave your home and you have to go to a new place where you don’t know anyone. It is horrible,” he says.
Bandaa Singh Chaudhary explores a rift between two communities and how certain extreme forces threaten to destroy peace. On whether the film reflects the rise in polarizing conflicts in recent times, Arshad says that the story focuses on a personal and relatable issue. “At the end of the day, it is the story of a common man, a regular husband, who fights for his right,” he says. “You must be a bad person to find anything wrong in something so positive,” he adds. Abhishek seconds him as he adds that the film’s intentions were always clear in their minds while making it. “We didn’t want to hurt anyone’s sentiments. This is not at all a story that can hurt anyone,” he says. “Rather, it is about people of all religions coming together to fight against the bad people.”
Abhishek says that it was Bandaa’s courage that really made him want to be a part of the story. “There are very few people who are able to stand up against any injustice meted out against them,” he says. “Although Bandaa is a fictional character that we have created, there were many whose stories we heard that inspired us to bring that courage on-screen,” Meher says that she took references from Sikh history in order to prepare for her role, particularly the 17th-century warrior soldier Mai Bhago, a Sikh woman known for her fiery skills on the battlefield. She also imbibed mannerisms from her own observations of powerful women she has come across in her life. “Women who have learnt martial arts in childhood, have a strong mindset and are better equipped to deal with everything. It is extremely difficult to break them. My character in the film is the same,” she says. The actor also took martial arts training for some of the action sequences.
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