Chronicling the Queen's relationship with her aide in 'Victoria & Abdul', Dame Judi Dench expresses her fondness for co-star Ali Fazal
Judi Dench and Ali Fazal in 'Victoria & Abdul'
When the idea of making 'Victoria & Abdul' germinated in producer Beeban Kidron's mind, she couldn't imagine anyone but Dame Judi Dench portraying the role of the British monarch. After all, the Academy Award-winning actor had etched her place in everyone's minds as Queen Victoria in her 1997 outing, 'Mrs Brown'.
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Two decades later, Dench has reprised her role in the Stephen Frears-directed drama that explores the Queen's nuanced relationship with her Indian servant, Abdul Karim.
The Queen's fondness for Abdul was a subject of much heartburn in the royal court during those times, and of much discussion in the years to follow. Dench has her own interpretation of the unusual friendship.
Dame Judi Dench
"Abdul was someone around whom she could actually relax, all protocol cancelled," Dench tells mid-day over e-mail. Given the loneliness that entails being the Queen, Dench states that she understands why the 19th century monarch would grow on to depend on the Munshi.
"[It was] a real relationship, (where she was) able to speak her mind to somebody. That's what it was more than anything else. It must have been glorious to have somebody to talk to," analyses the celebrated actor.
The film is based on Shrabani Basu's book, Victoria & Abdul: The True Story Of The Queen's Closest Confidant. Besides studying the Munshi's journals, Basu also referred to the 13 volumes of the Queen's Hindustani journals, which chronicled her daily lessons with the Munshi, who taught her Hindustani.
As part of their research for the drama, Dench and Fazal read the Queen's letters that were included in the Hindustani journals. However, their real challenge was to bring alive a relationship on screen, only through undertones. And this is where Dench feels her understated chemistry with Fazal came to the fore.
Besides being a dream co-star, the actor says that Fazal has gone on to become a friend she truly cherishes. "The friendship we struck is so beautiful," she says, before adding, "When Ali would walk in the room, you wouldn't recognise me. I would be a spring chicken, all over the place."
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