'Rather
Than
Broadening
Their
Thoughts,
People
Are
Making
It
Narrower
Nawazuddin
Siddiqui
has
been
receiving
a
lot
of
flak
from
netizens
and
fellow
actors
from
the
industry
for
accepting
the
role
of
Balasaheb
Thackeray,
a
controversial
figure
to
say
the
least.
However,
Nawaz
is
sure
of
his
stand
on
this.
When
asked
to
comment
on
the
backlash
he
has
been
receiving,
Nawaz
told
Times
Now,
"Thousands
of
people
will
say
thousands
of
things...
today
every
little
thing
is
turning
out
to
become
a
controversy.
Rather
than
broadening
their
thoughts,
people
are
making
it
narrower."
'I
Am
An
Actor.
I
Will
Do
Any
Role'
His
Gangs
of
Wasseypur
co-star
Richa
Chadha
called
Nawaz
‘bipolar'
for
taking
up
the
role.
The
stand
is
that
Thackeray
was
a
Hindu
fundamentalist
and
was
hostile
towards
migrants
from
the
North,
particularly
from
Uttar
Pradesh
and
Bihar.
Nawaz
defended
his
decision
in
playing
the
role
and
said,
"I
am
an
actor,
I
will
do
any
role.
And
moreover,
has
anyone
tried
to
see
the
other
side
of
it?
Now,
Shiv
Sena,
their
team
or
Sanjay
Raut
gave
me
this
role
not
on
the
basis
of
my
caste.
They
didn't
see
if
I
am
a
Muslim
or
whatever.
They
consider
me
as
an
artist
who
can
do
justice
to
a
character
like
Balasaheb
Thackeray.
Why
is
nobody
talking
about
this?"
Nawaz
On
Playing
Thackeray
Being
A
Muslim
From
UP
Many
think
it
is
ironic
that
a
Muslim
actor
from
Uttar
Pradesh
will
be
seen
playing
the
role
of
Balasaheb
Thackeray.
Nawaz
responded
to
this
by
saying,
"If
I
am
born
in
a
certain
community
then
how
am
I
responsible
for
that?
It's
not
something
that
we
get
out
of
choice."
He
Is
Unfazed
By
All
The
Criticism
But
Nawaz
is
unfazed
by
all
the
criticism
and
backlash.
"Everyone's
reaction
is
going
to
be
different
because
Balasaheb
Thackeray
was
one
such
personality.
Everyone
has
their
freedom
of
speech
and
expression,
so
they
can
go
on."
How
It
Felt
When
He
Was
First
Approached
With
The
Role
In
an
interview
with
Scroll,
Nawaz
shared
how
he
felt
when
he
was
first
asked
to
play
Bal
Thackeray.
He
said,
"I
couldn't
believe
it.
The
producer,
(Sanjay)
Raut
saab,
approached
me
and
I
agreed.
I
was
happy.
There
was
nervousness
as
well,
because
I
knew
I
had
to
work
very
hard
on
the
role.
The
film
is
also
in
Marathi
and
Hindi,
and
I
am
not
familiar
with
Marathi.
So
I
had
to
work
on
the
language
too."
'I
Want
People
To
See
An
Impression
Of
Balasaheb
In
Me'
On
prepping
for
the
role,
Nawaz
told
Scroll,
"Everyone
knows
who
Balasahab
Thackeray
is.
We
have
a
lot
of
his
footage
and
interviews
on
the
internet.
My
focus
was
on
how
he
used
to
live
in
his
private
space
and
how
he
behaved."
"One
of
the
biggest
parts
of
my
preparation
was
to
understand
what
I
shouldn't
do
in
a
biopic.
You
shouldn't
do
mimicry
or
caricature.
I
want
people
to
see
an
impression
of
Balasaheb
in
me,"
he
added.