Vicky Kaushal, who will be seen playing the role of revolutionary Udham Singh in Shoojit Sircar's film, shared a picture of himself from the sets of the film in what looks like London, which is where Udham Singh assassinated Michael O'Dwyer in 1940. In 1919, Michael O'Dwyer, then the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab, sent troops to Jallianwala Bagh where they fired on a gathering of unarmed protestors. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre deeply impacted the young Udham Singh who shot Michael O'Dwyer two decades later and was hanged for murder. In the picture he shared on Instagram, Vicky Kaushal is dressed in overcoat and hat. Behind him, the distinctive red double decker London bus can be seen.
Vicky Kaushal, star of this year's smash hit Uri: The Surgical Strike, wrote: "Running my fingers through the bullet holes at Jallianwala Bagh, little did I realise that I would one day get a chance to re-live and depict the anger and anguish of the lesser known martyr, revolutionary...Sardar Udham Singh.
Take a look at Vicky Kaushal's post here:
Udham Singh is a controversial and divisive figure in India's freedom struggle. He is seen by many as a 'shaheed' or martyr, by others as nothing more than a murderer. The film's director Shoojit Sircar recently spoke about the project and told news agency IANS: "Udham's struggle and sacrifice is a very important story for today's audiences to be made aware of, and I have collaborated with my esteemed writers Riteish Shah and Shubendu Bhattacharya, along with my friend and producer Ronnie Lahiri once again for this humble tribute to the maverick freedom fighter and his story."
Speaking of casting Vicky Kaushal in the lead role, the October director told IANS: "Vicky is unquestionably one of the most dynamic actors we have today, and together we shoulder great responsibility to deliver due justice in bringing alive this inspiring story on screen."
The biopic will be Vicky Kaushal's first collaboration with the Piku director. The film is slated to release next year.
Before Uri: The Surgical Strike, Vicky was seen in last year's well received Raazi, Sanju and Manmarziyan. The actor has signed an untitled period drama with Aditya Dhar, which will reportedly be based on the Mahabharata character Ashwatthama. Vicky Kaushal will also be seen in Karan Johar's Takht.
(With inputs from IANS)
