Prateik on fighting substance abuse while filming for his Bengali film debut
Prateik Babbar
Prateik Babbar, who broke free from his addiction to drugs, has revealed that he turned over a new leaf while shooting for his Bengali film debut, Aroni Taukhon, which is set for an overseas release next week.
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"During the filming phase, I was heavily into substance use and that was the first time I got a perspective on how it was important to say no to drugs. Self realisation struck on the set and finally helped me go clean.
In fact, I stayed away from drugs on set since I had to mentally and physically train for the role and get into the skin of my character," confesses Prateik, who, incidentally, plays a notorious rich boy addicted to drugs, but gets over it after finding the love of his life and eventually sacrificing her to another man.
"A big lesson I learnt was how love is the biggest sacrifice. I could relate to that situation since in my life too, I have changed for love and sacrificed people, who have meant the world to me, and finally made peace with loss," he adds.
In the Sourav Chakraborty-directed film, based on 1994 novel Kamor by Sarbani Mukhopadhyay, also stars Paoli Dam, Indraneil Sengupta and Soumitra Chatterjee in key roles. Shot over two months, the movie chronicles a journey of love between the time the Babri Masjid was demolished (1992) and the Godhra riots (2002).