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Akki plays safe this time; to grow face fuzz to stipulated size; plays Sardar in Komagata Maru

Size Does Matter: Akki's look in Singh Is Kinng

For Deepa Mehta's Komagata Maru, where he plays a real-life Sardarji who travelled in  the fateful ship from Hong Kong to Vancouver in 1914, Akshay Kumar will grow a beard to the size stipulated by the Sikh community.

After the furore raised over the beard he sported in  Anees Bazmee's Singh Is Kinng, Akki thought it was better to be safe than sorry. The actor begins shooting January 2010.

Akki goes grey

Deepa saw Akshay Kumar play a Sardar in Singh Is Kinng before casting him, "I thought he made a very good Sardar.

In KM, he has to play a 48-year old Sardar. And he's absolutely fine with a salt-and-pepper beard."

In fact, the actor has decided to set aside all his assignments for the film to avoid continuity clashes with other projects.

Says Deepa, "Considering he has so much work on  hand, I was surprised when he absolutely insisted on  growing a full-length beard.

One of the reasons I postponed KM to next year was so that Akshay would be able to block an entire chunk of dates for my film and keep the beard.

I was very sure I didn't want him for a month only to return with a false beard and finish my film."

In a stark departure from norm, Akshay Kumar will be seen in a serious role in Komagata Maru.