Throwback Thursday: Vivek Oberoi wanted to play Saif Ali Khan’s character in the film Omkara also starring Ajay Devgn, read what happened next!
Vishal Bharadwaj’s critically acclaimed directorial film “Omkara” recently celebrated its 15th anniversary. The film, which was released in 2006, was inspired by William Shakespeare’s famed classic “Othello.”
Langa Tyagi (Saif Ali Khan), Kesu Firangi (Vivek Anand Oberoi), Omi (Ajay Devgn), Dolly (Kareena Kapoor), and other significant parts played by Naseeruddin Shah, Deepak Dobriyal, Konkona Sen Sharma, Bipasha Basu, and others have made an impression on the audience.
Actor Vivek Oberoi, recalled amusing incidents from the set of “Omkara.”
“When Vishal bhai (brother) and Ajay had called me for the film, we sat together to read the script and loved it. Vishal bhai said that he saw me as Kesu Firangi. But I wanted to play Langda Tyagi. He said I was too young to play Langda Tyagi. As history would have it, Saif went on to play Langda Tyagi and win multiple awards as the best actor in a negative role, and I went on to play Kesu Firangi and went on to win multiple awards for the best supporting actor,” Vivek told IANS.
Vivek also shared his experience of shooting his introduction scene for the film in Lucknow University Campus. “This is the first time I realized what it would be like to be a political leader. It was really surreal,” said Vivek.
Oberoi has worked in a lot of films with Ajay Devgn including Masti, Yuva, Kaal, Company before Omkara. “Ajay is a big prankster. We have worked on 5 films together. We had that understanding,” Vivek said.
Sharing the joy of working with the director, Vivek revealed, “Vishal Bhardwaj is a very authentic filmmaker. He wants to make things look very realistic. He asked me to learn to play the guitar for my role. When I finally played it live during the shoot, the smile on Vishal bhai’s face, the way he felt, he came and gave me a big hug and told me that the scene had come out so good. I felt so good because when you’re able to achieve something that your director aspires you to do, something authentic, something real all the efforts become worth it,” Vivek Oberoi signed off.
