Nikhil Dwivedi to back a biopic on the country’s first superstar, Rajesh Khanna – Times of India

He was the country’s first superstar, in fact, the term superstar was coined for Rajesh Khanna — such was the fan-following and stardom of the actor, who gave Indian cinema unforgettable films like Anand, Aradhana, Kati Patang, Amar Prem and Khamoshi to name a few. BT has it that actor-producer Nikhil Dwivedi has picked up the rights to turn Gautam Chintamani’s book, Dark Star: The Loneliness of Being Rajesh Khanna, into a movie, which will be a biopic on the country’s first superstar. Filmmaker Farah Khan has been approached to direct it while Gautam is busy adapting the book into a screenplay.

Nikhil says, “I found the book very interesting and the thought of turning it into a film stayed with me all these years. It perfectly encapsulates the man behind the most iconic star our country has seen. There is so much intrigue attached to him. He had a regal personality. His career saw a dip, but he bounced right back. He was not meant to be in the business, but not only did he step into it, but he also conquered it. At no point in his career did he lose that regal aura. There are varied aspects to his personality which have been captured well in the book. The story of Rajesh Khanna’s life should have been told a long time ago. People who really knew him understood what made him so special.”

Farah adds, “Yes, I have read Gautam’s book and it’s very fascinating. We are in conversation over this, but I cannot comment more.” Given that Rajesh Khanna’s career ran into decades and he remained a public figure for most of his life, did the thought of turning the story into a web series ever cross his mind? After all, capturing a legend’s journey in a little over two hours of runtime is no mean feat. Nikhil says, “It’s tough to arrive at what one wants to keep in the film eventually. It’s a task and we are working on that aspect as we speak.”

Nikhil says, “Also, as storytellers, we tend to get greedy — we want to be able to tell as much as possible, especially when the subject is a personality as interesting as him. Even back in his time, superstars were meant to be rockstars and no one was better than Rajesh Khanna. If that needs to be shown, it will be done tastefully and respectfully. We only want to show what was true and real.”

Ask Nikhil whether he plans to seek consent from Rajesh Khanna’s family, and he says, “It’s not something we want to do behind someone’s back and we’re definitely not making something that thrives on controversies and sensationalism. It’s the story of India’s first superstar and we want to capture the magic of his personality and his achievements in the film. A film on his life is long overdue.” Talking about finding the perfect cast for the film, especially the protagonist, Nikhil says, “It will be the director’s call. I just know that an actor who can do half the justice he did to his work will be able to pull off his character on screen.”