Would The Real Nambi Narayanan Please Stand  Up?

We’ve heard many stories  of actors undergoing physical transformations to play a character. But has anyone heard of an actor actually getting the  shape of his teeth changed to look like  the character he  is  playing?

This is  what Madhavan  did to  bear a faultless resemblance to  scientist Nambi Narayanan.

Those who  have seen the  film are  raving about the  uncanny likeness between the real and reel  Narayanan.

When real Nambi Narayanan saw Madhavan playing Nambi  Narayanan  on the sets he  thought he was looking at his mirror image.

Says  Madhavan, “It took me six years of research to get to know the man and  another two years  to  undergo  the  physical changes that  were needed for me  to look like Narayanan. For me  getting into the  skin of  the character was as important as getting the physicality right.  I  think actors who  claim that looking physically close to  the characters they  play, is not important,are just being lazy.”

Madhavan went to savage limits to look like Namabi Narayanan. “My weight went  up  to  96 kgs  while I  was  playing the older Nambi Sir. That  paunch that  you see  on screen is  not   a pillow. A  lot of people  think it is fake. Which isa   backhanded compliment, really. They can’t believe  any actor would gain so much weight for a role and then lose  it all .My family  was really worried about how I will  lose  all that weight. I  did not resort to any crash diet. I didn’t  starve  myself to lose weight. I did  it organically and naturally and I  was back in shape in just fourteen days.”

But  for  Nambi Narayanan Madhavan was  willing to do anything. “His story had to be told, and told authentically. I was willing to make any sacrifice that the  role  needed.”

Now  after seeing  Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, spectators are  speechless. They are  wondering about Madhavan’s  directorial acumen. This doesn’t look  like  his directorial debut.

“Well, I have been observing masters  like Mani Ratnam and  Raju Hirani at work. Kuch toh seekha  hai  itne saalon mein(I must have  learnt something from them).”