My grandmother would’ve been happy to see me play a Sikh: Abhishek

Actor Abhishek Bachchan, who plays a Sikh in Manmarziyaan, says his paternal grandmother, the late Teji Bachchan, who belonged to the community, would have been happy to see him portray this role.

When Abhishek’s first look was unveiled, his megastar father Amitabh Bachchan had shared the picture on social media and expressed his pride. “Yes, dad shared the picture of my turbaned look and he said that he felt proud. My dadima (grandmother) was Sikh, so there is an emotional attachment to the whole thing. Though the first time when I wore the turban to get my look done for the shooting, I was more focused on my performance. But later when I saw the footage, I felt special. I think my dadima would have been happy to see my as sardar on-screen,” he told IANS.

The actor became nostalgic as he spoke of his grandmother. “Dadima used to tell me and my sister some wonderful bedtime stories. She used to put us to sleep with those stories… We had so many lovely memories with dadima,” said the actor, whose elder sister Shweta has recently turned designer.

The story of Manmarziyaan is set in Amritsar. He plays Robbie, a banker based in London who comes to his native place to get married to a girl who he later finds is in love with another man.

So, did he get a chance to travel around the vibrant city of Amritsar? “No, not much during the shoot because we had a tight schedule to finish everything. So we did not get much time to explore Amritsar,” said the actor.

Abhishek has shared screen space with both his parents — Jaya Bachchan and Big B — as well as his wife Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. According to him, his father is the best co-star anybody can have.

“As an actor, he disarms you, makes you very comfortable in front of the camera. But I know he is my dad so I can go back home and can discuss my character with him. My experience with him is a combination of father-son and co-workers,” said Abhishek who has worked with Big B in films like Paa, Sarkar and Bunty Aur Babli.

“I must mention that anybody who has worked with him would love to work with him again and again,” he added. As he has signed a film titled Gulab Jamun along with Aishwarya, Abhishek said: “We will be working together almost after eight years. So, yes, I am excited. Though we do not know when exactly the shooting will start, both of us are excited. The script is wonderful.”

At a time when star kids are getting overexposed to the paparazzi culture, does his six-year-old daughter Aaradhya feels comfortable before photographers when she travels with her parents? Abhishek said: “Well, she has no choice I guess. But a baby cannot feel comfortable completely when those flashlights come on their face. I must say that Aishwarya has worked hard to make Aaradhya familiar with the fact that whenever we will go out, photographers will come to click our pictures. She knows it now, so she doesn’t get scared. Apart from that, we always try to give her a normal lifestyle, a normal childhood you know; which is unaffected by this whole paparazzi culture.”

Manmarziyaan, featuring Taapsee Pannu and Vicky Kaushal along with Abhishek, is releasing on September 14.