BENGALURU: Though excited about being part of a war movie like his recently-released Pippa, actor Priyanshu Painyuli was sure that his character Major Ram Mehta was quite different from his personality. However, to perfect his role, he found inspiration at home. “My father is a retired Colonel. I have picked up things from him and have taken inspiration from many Army officers I have met during my lifetime. But apart from being a war hero, this character is also the elder brother in the family who is like a father figure. Getting that transition right was tricky since I have grown up with siblings but have never been the older one,” says Painyuli.
The movie, which was released on OTT, is based on the life of Captain Balram Singh Mehta, played by Ishan Khattar, of India’s 45 Cavalry regiment who, along with his siblings, fought on the eastern front during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971. Painyuli was quite happy with the way his character was treated and was looking forward to the release. “This was the most special ones of my picks and as an actor, it’s great to do a war movie. This movie ticks that box and in many ways, ticks other things on my bucket list, like working in an AR Rahman movie,” says Painyuli.
Being a war hero, Painyuli’s character gives a very no-nonsense essence to it, with very little emotion and even fewer dialogues. For example, there is a scene where a young boy is shot dead in front of him but being a war hero and having seen it all already, he hardly shows any emotions. “I don’t think I spoke to the director Raja (Krishna Menon) sir a lot about this. He just said let’s get on with the scene and let’s see what you do. I thought this is the way I would approach it (sic),” he recalls.
Painyuli generally does not like to complicate his process. “The script helps me understand the world very well. Also, I want to challenge myself with something different and exciting each time. I have also been lucky to find those kinds of characters, diverse stories seem to be coming my way,” he adds.