Pippa, a film based on the Indo-Pak war of 1971, is going to be streamed on Amazon Prime from November 10. In this film, Ishaan Khattar is playing the role of Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta, one of the war heroes of 1971. Ishaan says it is a privilege to play the role of a real-life hero. As an actor, you get very few opportunities to play such characters, so I felt a responsibility to play this character. The best thing was that Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta is the important pivot of the story, who was the commander at that time. He was present with us all the time on the set to guide us and tell us about the role played by India during that war. Highlights of the conversation with Urmila Kori…
How challenging was it to bring the spirit of the real life hero i.e. soldier on screen?
Indeed, soldiers are the real heroes of our lives and when it comes to a soldier, the meaning of hero changes. When you wear the uniform, it’s a very different feeling, it gives you a sense of responsibility and it has a very strong purpose. We took it very seriously. We were trained with the army personnel for our roles in this film, during which we developed more respect and pride towards them. When you see things from a distance, your vision is different but when you come closer you realize that there is much more depth to it. There is a very human side in every soldier and it takes a lot of patience, determination and courage to do what they do every day and it is part of their life and lifestyle. It was very important for us to understand and assimilate it.
This film is from the 70’s. What was your personal homework?
Talking about the film Pippa, it is not only the story of a war but also of a family. This is the story of the 70s. I have not experienced that period because I was not even born at that time. For this film, I studied a lot about that period, what clothes they wore, what their lifestyle was like, learned about everything but when I started playing the character, it was completely different. There is a different experience in front of the camera. Standing in a tank and commanding a force was very challenging in itself. Understanding the life of a soldier was a big challenge and then living the life of the army was another challenge but when Whenever I got stuck, Balram sir used to guide us and explain the details. Director Raja Menon also did a lot of research for this film, so things became easier.
How was your first meeting with Brigadier Balram Mehta?
When I spoke to Balram sir for the first time, we met him through a Zoom call. Later I insisted that I wanted to meet him personally and seek his blessings before the shooting of the film. They were kind enough to allow me. I asked him a lot of questions in the first meeting itself, but after a while I felt that it was too much. I said sorry, hey, I bombarded you with questions. He replied, Boy, you will be happy to know that I am addicted to bombing. For me it was a form of expression while for him it was reality. His experience is amazing.
War films are not new in cinema, so what would you say is the specialty of Pippa?
I think this was a very important event. Today’s youth should know about this. This was a proud moment in history for us and it is important to talk about this event and discuss about it. As far as war is concerned, I am a pacifist person. I am one of those people who believe that the answer to every issue is not war, but this war of 1971 was very special. We fought that battle for Bangladesh. Helped them. We won but the next moment we left that land and came back. For me I consider it a proud and great moment, I don’t think any country has ever done this for anyone.
If we look at your acting career, you do very few projects?
I always try to choose the best from the opportunities I get. I have always tried to do films where I get opportunities, where I can be involved, excited and interested and not bored. I like to be completely involved in a film and understand the character and give my full time and only after one project is completely over I join the other. For example, if I am growing my hair for a film, I would not like to cut it or change my physical appearance for another role. This is one reason why I don’t do two films at once. I want to give time to the characters I play because it is an emotional experience and I like to give time to the film. Because of which many times I am not able to join one project immediately after the other.