Tahir Raj Bhasin to play Sunder Shyam Chadda in Nandita Das’ ‘Manto’

After playing an antagonist in ‘Mardaani’ and ‘Force 2’, actor Tahir Raj Bhasin will now be seen playing the role of actor Sunder Shyam Chadda in Nandita Das‘s second directorial venture, a Saadat Hasan Manto biopic. The movie already features Nawazuddin Siddiqui playing the protagonist.

For the uninitiated, Shyam starred in many films, including Abdul Rashid Kardar’s ‘Dillagi’, H S Rawail’s ‘Patanga’ and Ramesh Saigal’s ‘Samadhi’. He had died on the sets of ‘Shabistan’ in 1951. Nandita confirmed Tahir’s presence in the film and said, “As you might know, I had been looking for Shyam for a while. I needed someone who has the charm and attitude of a star, yet is gentle, humble, genuine and above all, a good actor. Tahir seems to have all these qualities, and rather naturally. Also, he resembles Shyam who was destined to be a huge star had he not fallen off the horse and died at 36.” (Also Read: ‘Manto’ first look: Nawazuddin Siddiqui bears an uncanny resemblance to the writer)

Asked about what was Shyam’s connect with Manto, Nandita said, “It is a film about Manto and his friendship with Shyam was special and went through many twists and turns. So it’s undoubtedly a pivotal role which impacts the story significantly.”

Nandita also said that she cannot wait to for two actors to rehearse together, as they are both natural, funny and already comfortable with each other. “We will be doing more rehearsals once Nawaz is done shooting for ‘Munna Michael’. I am looking forward to watching the relationship between Manto and Shyam unfold,” she admitted.

Speaking of when she will start shooting for the movie, she adds, “Sooner than I want it to be, there is so much still to do! It is a big film, not in terms of its budget but in vision, intent and heart.”

And we cannot wait for the magic to unfold on screen either.