Escape to fantasy

Nawazuddin Siddiqui was perhaps a chameleon in his previous birth. That possibly explains his penchant for immersing himself into his characters. An unassuming presence off-screen, the effect is totally reversed on screen. You can’t take your eyes off him. His gestures say a thousand words and he steals the scene even with his silences. He can be the legendary writer Saadat Manto, Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray as well as the fictional crime lord, Ganesh Gaitonde, with equal ease. Who would have thought that the no-name actor, who was beaten up by the police in Sarfarosh (1999), would one day rub shoulders with top stars and make them a fan of his talent? But showbiz dreams are made up of such improbabilities.

“TEN YEARS AGO, LOOKING AT MY FACE, PEOPLE