Actress-director Nandita Das says it doesn't take long for actors to get stereotyped and so, she empathises with those "stars" who refused to play the second lead in her upcoming directorial "Manto".
Actress-director
Nandita
Das
says
it
doesn't
take
long
for
actors
to
get
stereotyped
and
so,
she
empathises
with
those
"stars" who
refused
to
play
the
second
lead
in
her
upcoming
directorial
Manto.
Nandita
had
earlier
said
that
it
wasn't
a
piece
of
cake
to
finalise
the
cast
of
Manto,
which
she
describes
as
"totally
a
labour
of
love".
She
had
presumed
that
there
will
be
"young
charming
actors"
in
abundance
to
play
Manto's
closest
friend
Shyam
in
the
movie,
but
she
says
"all
stars"
whom
she
approached
said
"no"
for
the
fear
of
looking
like
a
second
lead.
Asked
about
it,
Nandita
told
IANS
over
the
phone
from
Mumbai:
"They
(actors)
also
have
pressures.
They
feel
'Oh,
I
will
be
seen
as
the
second
lead.'
I'm
happy
with
the
person
whom
we
have
found.
It's
not
about
being
the
second
lead.
That
character
is
very
crucial
in
the
film.
The
story
is
always
bigger
than
one
role."
"We
(actors)
have
challenges
of
working
in
our
industry.
There
is
a
certain
perception.
I
understand
and
I
empathise
with
them.
If
you
play
the
second
lead,
you
are
branded
as
that.
If
somebody
plays
a
villain,
you
are
branded
as
that.
You
do
certain
kind
of
roles,
and
then
you
get
immediately
stereotyped."
Nawazuddin
Siddiqui
essays
the
role
of
Saadat
Hasan
Manto
in
the
film,
which
is
based
on
the
late
Urdu
short
story
writer.
The
latest
one
to
join
the
film's
cast
is
Chandan
Roy
Sanyal,
known
for
movies
like
Kaminey
and
D-Day.
So,
is
Chandan
playing
Shyam
in
the
period
drama?
"Chandan
is
not
playing
Shyam.
That
is
an
assumption.
He
is
playing
another
writer.
The
name
of
the
actor
who
is
playing
Shyam
will
be
revealed
soon," said
Nandita,
whose
"Between
The
Lines"
was
one
of
the
first
CinePlays,
a
new
storytelling
format,
to
go
live
on
Hotstar
--
a
video-on-demand
app
--
earlier
this
month.
"Manto"
will
go
on
floors
from
March
15.