Whatever good is happening with 'Newton' is my mom's blessings: Rajkummar
New Delhi
September 24, 2017
Actor Rajkummar Rao lost his mother while he was in the midst
of shooting "Newton", a political black comedy which has been locked as India's
official entry for the foreign language film category at Oscars. He says the
blessings of his "guiding star" are taking him places.
"Whatever good is
happening with 'Newton' is because of my mom's blessings. I really believe in
that," Rajkummar told IANS.
The Drishyam Films movie, produced by Manish
Mundra and directed by Amit V Masurkar, features the National Award-winning
actor as Nutan Kumar aka Newton, a rookie but sincere government clerk who is
sent on election duty to a Naxal-controlled town in the conflict-ridden jungles
of Chhattisgarh state in India.
"Newton" had a world premiere at the 67th
Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Art Cinema award in the
Forum segment. It also bagged a jury prize for Best Film at the Hong Kong
International Film Festival.
Rajkummar said: "Winning in Berlinale, in
Hong Kong and then to get such an amazing response, reviews and now to be
India's official entry for Oscars... My mother is right up there and keeping a
check on me. Her blessings are always going to be with me, I know."
"I
absolutely believe she's my guiding star," added the actor, who was shooting for
"Newton" when he received the news of his mother's death in March last year.
Hoping that "Newton" goes further in the Oscar race, and eventually wins,
Rajkummar said it stands out because it's a very "Indian film".
"I'm
happy people saw that Indianness in 'Newton'. It has a global appeal and it's so
universal in nature, but still so rooted and grounded (in India)," said the
actor, who debuted in Hindi filmdom with "Love Sex Aur Dhokha", and has since
won critical acclaim for movies like "Shahid", "Citylights", "Aligarh" and
"Trapped".
His last release before "Newton" was "Bareilly Ki Barfi",
which gave the audiences and critics a chance to realise Rajkummar's range as an
actor as they got to see him in a completely different avatar than his previous
outings.
"My process of choosing scripts remains the same. Of whatever I
read and whatever excites me is what I will continue to take up," said
Rajkummar, who was born and raised in Gurugram, and studied acting at the Film
and Television Institute of India in Pune.
Some critics have gone to the
extent of hailing him as the Naseeruddin Shah of current times.
Laughing
out at the comparison, the actor humbly said: "Naseer sir is one of the finest
actors of our country. We have only one Naseeruddin Shah and we are very proud
of him."
New Delhi
September 24, 2017
Actor Rajkummar Rao lost his mother while he was in the midst
of shooting "Newton", a political black comedy which has been locked as India's
official entry for the foreign language film category at Oscars. He says the
blessings of his "guiding star" are taking him places.
"Whatever good is
happening with 'Newton' is because of my mom's blessings. I really believe in
that," Rajkummar told IANS.
The Drishyam Films movie, produced by Manish
Mundra and directed by Amit V Masurkar, features the National Award-winning
actor as Nutan Kumar aka Newton, a rookie but sincere government clerk who is
sent on election duty to a Naxal-controlled town in the conflict-ridden jungles
of Chhattisgarh state in India.
"Newton" had a world premiere at the 67th
Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Art Cinema award in the
Forum segment. It also bagged a jury prize for Best Film at the Hong Kong
International Film Festival.
Rajkummar said: "Winning in Berlinale, in
Hong Kong and then to get such an amazing response, reviews and now to be
India's official entry for Oscars... My mother is right up there and keeping a
check on me. Her blessings are always going to be with me, I know."
"I
absolutely believe she's my guiding star," added the actor, who was shooting for
"Newton" when he received the news of his mother's death in March last year.
Hoping that "Newton" goes further in the Oscar race, and eventually wins,
Rajkummar said it stands out because it's a very "Indian film".
"I'm
happy people saw that Indianness in 'Newton'. It has a global appeal and it's so
universal in nature, but still so rooted and grounded (in India)," said the
actor, who debuted in Hindi filmdom with "Love Sex Aur Dhokha", and has since
won critical acclaim for movies like "Shahid", "Citylights", "Aligarh" and
"Trapped".
His last release before "Newton" was "Bareilly Ki Barfi",
which gave the audiences and critics a chance to realise Rajkummar's range as an
actor as they got to see him in a completely different avatar than his previous
outings.
"My process of choosing scripts remains the same. Of whatever I
read and whatever excites me is what I will continue to take up," said
Rajkummar, who was born and raised in Gurugram, and studied acting at the Film
and Television Institute of India in Pune.
Some critics have gone to the
extent of hailing him as the Naseeruddin Shah of current times.
Laughing
out at the comparison, the actor humbly said: "Naseer sir is one of the finest
actors of our country. We have only one Naseeruddin Shah and we are very proud
of him."
Tags: Rajkummar RaoNewtonShahidCity LightsAligarhTrappedLove Sex aur DhokhaBareilly Ki Barfi