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The production people tied a wire around me and pulled me about 100 metres above the ground which would be around 10-storey high

Pankaj Kapur, who plays Mandola in Vishal Bhardwaj's Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola has treaded several new paths in this film. These include prepping up for dance sequences, hanging in the air for a parachute sequence and going under water!

Since the actor plays a fun-loving alcoholic, he was required to dance in several songs. "Not that I don't know anything about movements but I used to dance during theatre days. Today, I don't need to dance in the kind of roles I do, and then since I am in my 50s these things don't come naturally to me," admits the actor.

But instead of fretting about it, Kapur took this as an opportunity to learn some dance steps and enjoy himself. "The choreographer's assistants teaching me were very patient and excellent at their job. Though, it was a lot of hard work, I thoroughly enjoyed learning those steps. Moreover, dancing with youngsters like Imran Khan and Anushka Sharma made it fun."

Another challenge for Kapur was a scene where he had to slide down holding a parachute. "The production people tied a wire around me and pulled me about 100 metres above the ground which would be around 10-storey high. Initially, I was apprehensive but when I was up there looking down at the entire unit, who were setting the lights, I was thrilled. I loved the experience despite the fact that it was three in the morning and cold and windy," he said.

For the first time, the actor has also shot an under water sequence in the film. The scene required him to jump into the water and the director made him jump in a pond. "The crew filled it with fresh water but the pond still had some mud and dirt at the bottom. I had to go under water and stay there for a second. Plus, we shot this sequence at four am in the morning and the water was pitch black. I followed my gut instincts and fortunately nothing untoward occurred." Bhardwaj took two takes of the shot, so Kapur came out of the pond dripping wet and the crew had to dry his clothes so that the actor could repeat the shoot.

... contd.

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