Bose original choice to play Saleem?

Actor Rahul Bose who will soon be seen as General Zulfikar in the upcoming film Midnight’s Children, was actually the original choice for the role of Saleem for author Salman Rushdie, around 15 years ago. In 1997, Bose had auditioned for the role of Saleem in front of Rushdie. And Rushdie had signed him to play the lead role of Saleem in a documentary-styled film series. He had planned that the novel will be made into a five film series with BBC Networks. However, due to some unavoidable reasons, the film had to be called off.

But that did not stop Bose from being a part of the film. Now the actor is again associated with it as he is playing the role of General Zulfikar in the Deepa Mehta’s adapted version.  Midnight’s Children is a film by Oscar-nominated director Deepa Mehta, based on the Booker Prize-winning novel by Salman Rushdie. At the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, as India declares independence from Great Britain, two new born babies, Saleem and Shiva are switched by a nurse in a Bombay hospital. Their lives become mysteriously intertwined and are inextricably linked to India’s whirlwind journey of triumphs and disasters. Hopeful, comic and magical - the film conjures images and characters as rich and unforgettable as India herself.

PVR Pictures is all set to release Midnight’s Children on February 1.