Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Dibakar's next

Nawazuddin Siddiqui in Dibakar's next

What a year it has been for the super-talented actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui! Three of his performances in Kahaani, Gangs Of Wasseypur and Talaash were applauded unanimously. And now at year-end Nawaz has bagged a prestigious film with Dibakar Banerjee which the Shanghai director has decided to make prior to his Kolkata-based murder mystery that he planned to make next.

Nawaz, who is currently busy playing the Mountain Man in Ketan Mehta's bio-pic on the Bihari road-builder Dashrath Manjhi, would now be exploring an all-new facet of his personality as an actor: himself!

One hears Dibakar's film delves into the psyche of a struggling actor. And who can put up a better struggle than Nawaz who spent 12 years struggling for a foothold in Bollywood?

Dibakar says Nawaz will play an "ordinary man" in his film. He wants facets of Nawaz's real life on screen. The director in fact is researching into elements from Nawaz's past to incorporate into his character.

Says Nawaz, "It's true that Dibakar is looking into my background to build the character. In fact Dibakar's assistant came to my village, Budhana in Uttar Pradesh, to see where and how I lived before I became an actor, to meet my family and to understand where I come from."

In Dibakar's film, Nawaz will play a theatre actor who gets swallowed into a clerical life in Mumbai but dreams of pursuing his first love. Veteran actor Sadashiv Amrapurkar will be play Nawazuddin's mentor in theatre.

Says the actor, "I go into Dibakar's film immediately after I finish Ketan Mehta's Mountain Man which needs just 4-5 more days of shooting on the railway tracks of Gaya in Bihar. I am thankful to directors like Ketan and Dibakar for showing so much faith in me as an actor. I've struggled a very long time to get this opportunity."

Nawaz considers Gangs Of Wasseypur to be turning-point in his career. "I am so grateful that Wasseypur came before Talaash. I'd have remained a character actor if it wasn't for Wasseypur. Now I'm being offered only lead roles."

Nawaz says he's treading cautiously. "I am listening to 4-5 scripts every day. But I've accepted only three offers for 2013. I am hungry for opportunities. But I don't want to over-do it. When I look back on 2012, I see a lot to be grateful for."