Amitabh to portray a blind lawyer

Monday, May 29, 2006

Mumbai (UNI): After essaying many roles in his career in Bollywood, superstar Amitabh Bachchan now plays a blind lawyer in S Ramanathan's Zamaanat, which will finally release next month. This is the first time in his more than three decade-old career that he plays the role of a blind lawyer. Raamanathan had earlier directed Amitabh in Bombay to Goa. Clad in a deep-red Chinese designer kurta, which is said to be a gift to him from actor Sanjay Dutt, Amitabh talked to newspersons about the much-delayed Zamaanat on Saturday.

On his role, the 'Big B' said he plays a blind lawyer Shivshankar in the movie, who has decided to stop practising. The movie also stars Karisma Kapur, paired opposite Arshad Warsi who is wrongly implicated and put behind bars. Karisma then approaches Shivshankar, but he does not want to take up the case. She scolds him and make him realise the importance of love, knowing little that Shivshankar is also a lovelorn person. He retaliates to her anger and then, whether he accepts the case or not is to watch out for in the film.

On his co-stars, Amitabh said Karisma is a good actor and Arshad has matured as a great performer. Arshad was discovered by Amitabh's company ABCL for his debut film. Amitabh said the directors down South are quite disciplined. ''They like to be on time and finish their work on time. Nowadays Bollywood, too, is planned as everyone wants to be prompt and give in their best," he said.

Shifting to the topic of India International Film Awards (IIFA) for which he is the brand ambassador, Amitabh said he is all set to attend the functions associated with the event. ''I've been closely associated with IFFA awards as it gives Indian cinema a global recognition. This time IFFA will be held in Dubai, which is close to my heart too. I'm in no position to tell whether I will perform there or not,'' he added. To a poser on whether his work load is affecting his health, Amitabh Bachchan said he is taking care of his health and is just back after a long holiday. ''I cannot sit idle. I have been in this field for more than 30 years, what else can I do? It feels great to be back.

In other news, the Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan has come out in support of fellow actor Aamir Khan who has been at the receiving end of the BJP's ire in Gujarat for his stand on the Narmada dam issue. Amitabh told mediapersons that it was incorrect to state that the film industry was not unitedly supporting Aamir. ''Everybody is supporting Aamir in their individual capacity. In a democracy, all have the right to express their views,'' he added. Aamir's latest movie Fanaa has been banned from screening in Gujarat over the actor's views on the controversial Narmada dam issue.