Arshad Warsi Reveals How Bandaa Singh Chaudhary's Story Is Relevant Today: ' We Are Fighting With...'

The trailer of Arshad Warsi and Meher Vij's upcoming film, Bandaa Singh Chaudhary, was unveiled at an event in Mumbai on Tuesday. Directed by Abhishek Saxena, the film is set in Punjab in the 1980s. It is about loyalty, loss, and the fight for India's soul. The film is just not another story of political upheaval but a heart-wrenching tale of fractured communities searching for unity amid chaos.

On backing the project, producer Arbaaz Khan said, "I always wanted to associate with this film in some way or the other and the opportunity did come. It's an amazing film and the actors and directors have done a great job. It's a film about national integration and a man fighting for his rights. It is a great entertainer."

"This film is about a common man, who is settled in his life and is fighting against all odds. It is not about how physically fit Bandaa is but it is about his mental strength. That is something Arshad has worked on, in fact, he also gained weight for the character," Arbaaz added. 

Asked how the film is relevant in today's time, Arbaaz stated, "To tell a good story does not need a time. As a filmmaker, we always make sure that the movie connects to the audience. This film is based at a certain time when there must have been some unrest, but the story is of a family and how they are fighting for respect and dignity. " To this, Arshad added, "If you see this is something which happens with us even today. We are continuously fighting with something or the other. The film is just about that but on a larger scale."

Arshad revealed the similarities between him and his character. "Bandaa Singh is a normal man like me. But I don't have the strength or courage to be like this character. Every person is courageous and your physical strengths don't matter when you show courage. That's the beauty of our film." 

He also joked that filmmakers usually don't offer him such intense roles. "I am such a good actor. I don't understand why people don't give me these kinds of roles. I am standing in front of that buffet table which has only one dish (laughs). But, honestly, this is not a very serious role. The scenes are fun, there's humour and the story gets intense only after a particular point in the film. It's quite entertaining," he said. 

Further opening up about the project, Abhishek stated, "Bandaa is a fictitious character and when we researched, we found that a lot of people struggled at that time after they were forcefully removed from their homes. Bandaa is inspired by many such people."

Lead actress Meher talked about the most challenging aspect of her role. She said, "I'm performing Gatka (a martial art form associated with Sikhs). It looks beautiful but it is very difficult to perform. I faced a lot of challenges while training. But I really liked doing it. Also, I'm playing the role of a person who has a very strong mindset. I had no idea about how I would look on screen while doing action. I was very nervous and I think I gained that confidence to do a character like this while shooting the film."

The film is all set to hit the big screens on October 25.