Vicky Kaushal As General Manekshaw Is A Blunder

Why on earth would any sensible director—and  going by Meghna  Gulzar’s  record, she  qualifies—cast Vicky Kaushal  as General Sam Manekshaw?   The wiry young gaunt  actor looks nothing  like the General,neither in  body  nor in spirit  nor in speech.

Apparently the  role was  offered   to Ranveer Singh. And it’s  a  pity he is not doing it. Ranveer with his  boisterous  personality and unplumbed energy, is  the  perfect fit for General Manekshaw. Unfortunately  Ranveer was  playing another  well-known real-life character—cricketer  Kapil Dev in Kabir Khan’s  ’83—and didn’t want to take  on  another  bio-pic so soon after.

 It is  for this reason  that Deepika Padukone  also opted  out of  Meghna Gulzar’s Sam Bahadur. After Meghna  Gulzar’s  Chhapaak where Deepika played  a real-life victim of an acid attack, Gulzar Jr wanted Deepika to play Mrs Manekshaw.  But Deepika was already  committed to play the supporting role of Mrs Kapil Dev in ’83.

 Meghna  Gulzar then opted for her Raazi leading man as Manekshaw and Sanya Malhotra as his  missus which seems  to be  compromise casting. Vicky Kaushal who comes freshly from his  triumph  as Udham Singh in Shoojit Sircar’s film,would find it hard  to merge into General Manekshaw’s personality.

We can only pray for the best.