'Narendra Modi biopic will cover 2002 Gujarat riots': Paresh Rawal to play PM onscreen

It was earlier reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rags to riches story has caught the fancy of NRI filmmaker Mitesh Patel, who is making a projected Rs 40-crore movie on him. Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Paresh Rawal will be playing the role of Modi in the film. [caption id="" align=“alignleft” width=“380”]   Paresh Rawal and Narendra Modi. PTI[/caption] In an exclusive interview to Firstpost, Rawal divulged more details on the biopic. “The script is still being locked, three-fourth of the script is done. We plan to start next year, some time in March-April.  It will be very challenging. You have to go beyond that (mimicry). If I have to mimic Modi ji, then there are many people (who can do that). There’s no mimicry here that’s why it is difficult. Right now, I am meeting him, seeing him but then there is a preparation which happens when you detach yourself. You can’t prepare by just watching,” said Rawal. He revealed that the biopic will also cover the controversial ground of the 2002 Gujarat riots, of which Modi was accused as a conspirator. “Everything will be there. The notion that people have… the people, who are roaming around acting as judiciary, their notion will also be shown,” he said. Filmmamker Mitesh Patel admits the film on the politician couldn’t be better-timed, but denied that it was an “image-building exercise” for Modi. Patel added that the movie will essentially delve into how Modi progressed from being a tea stall worker to the Prime Minister. “I am very impressed by his progress, so my movie is based on him and his struggle. I wish to give a positive message through the film. I have met him and explained my idea to him, and he said, ‘Okay’,” Patel, who is originally from Vadodara, said. Writer Mihir Bhuta, and Kishore Makwana, a close Modi associate who has penned a book titled Samaajik Samrasta based on Modi’s speeches and writings, are helping Patel to put the film together. “They are helping me with perfect information on Modi sir, and I am also taking help of books. But the film will be a mix of fact and fiction. Mihir Bhuta has written the script,” said Patel. Patel, hopes to present the movie as a commercial biopic on the lines of the 2013 hit B_haag Milkha Bhaag_, which profiled the struggles of ace athlete Milkha Singh and Guru, which was inspired by the life of businessman Dhirubhai Ambani. With inputs from Agencies.