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Journalism of Courage
Shreyas Talpade on turning letter writer for Benegal
The last time actor Shreyas Talpade wrote letters was in 2004. Then only his wife-to-be in London, Deepti, came to know of them. This time, by writing letters for a riot of villagers in Shyam Benegal8217;s movie Welcome to Sajjanpur, Talpade has got a bigger 8212; but an equally encouraging 8212; response.
While Talpade8217;s character Mahadev relives the ambitions of being a writer by jotting down letters and sending text messages, the movie becomes a light-hearted comment on rural India, not quite the favourite location of new Bollywood. Talpade confesses that he had some reservations when he was offered the project. 8220;I was taken aback when I heard Shyam babu was doing a comedy. But when I heard the script, I realised that only he could come up with such a plot. There was romance interwoven with a strong message about rural India. I approached the project with a blank slate and followed Shyam babu8217;s directions,8221; he says.
Working with Benegal proved to be a learning curve. 8220;Shyam babu gave us a free hand. He was disciplined, but not strict. He helped us in improving our shots but let us experiment,8221; he says.
With so many comic flicks under his belt, has comedy become second nature to him? Not quite, admits Talpade. But funnies are not far away. After the horror flick Click, he comes back to slapstick with Golmaal Returns. For now, the distance between post office and box office is reduced.
