Sharifuddin of 'Jodhaa Akbar' is now Ghazni of 'Mission Istanbul'

Mumbai, June 29 (IANS) Nikitin Dheer, who stood against Mughal emperor Akbar in Ashutosh Gowarikar's "Jodhaa Akbar", will be now seen upholding the mission of "Talibans" in Apoorva Lakhia's new action packed thriller "Mission Istanbul".

Son of well-known TV actor Pankaj Dheer, Nikitin has gone through a significant transformation in physical and behavioural characteristic from his last film to play the negative lead "Mission Istanbul" that also has Vivek Oberoi, Zayed Khan and Shabbir Ahulwalia.

"Ghazni is completely different from Sharifuddin. Sharifuddin was a historical character and Ghazni is a contemporary one. Besides, the physical attributes, their behaviour and mannerisms are bound to be different," Nikitin told IANS.

"I had to loose 15 kgs in a short period of time to fit the character. In my first film, I played a historical character so there was no six packs. I just had to gain weight to look strong and fit the character in 'Jodhaa Akbar', but in this role I am playing a contemporary personality so I have to be in the best of shape," said Nikitin.

"The behaviour and the diction of this role are also quite contrary from my last character. I have completely changed the behaviour in this film from the last one, be it the way I speak, walk or any other thing,"

Nikitin, who always aspired to be an actor from childhood, said he is inspired by his father who played Karna in Ravi Chopra's TV series "Mahabharat".

He said: "I used to see my father's performance in 'Mahabharat' and he used to save the episodes for my reference. He gave me the guidance and inspiration."

Nikitin, who considers Akshay Kumar as the icon of action films in Bollywood, considers action to be his forte. The actor is well-versed in martial arts.

"I have gone through a six years course in 'full contact fighting' followed by a certificate course in 'Jeet Kune Do', 'Ai Kido', 'Jujitsu', 'Wrestling', 'Crappling', 'Kick Boxing', and weapons training (except guns) from the US."

Besides acting course from Mumbai, Nikitin took training in dance from the famous choreographer Saroj Khan.

The 28-year-old waited five years to get the right role in "Jodhaa Akbar" and says role selection is very important as it shapes the career of an actor.

"I was selected among 40 others for the role of Sharifuddin in 'Jodhaa Akbar'. When I was shooting for the climax of the film, our action director Ravi Dewan suggested my name to Suneil Shetty for 'Mission Istanbul'. I was called to his office. Suneil and Apoorva liked my photographs and thought that I suited the role. Finally, I was selected and I want to thank Ravi for this."

Does he feel that playing negative roles in both the films would typecast him?

"There is no villain in today's film. It is only the characters that we play. I don't want to be type cast and I believe that I won't be even type cast. Most probably I might play a positive role in my next film."

As far as future films are concerned, the actor said: "Just wait and watch."

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Mission Istanbul