Arun Khetarpal's brother gets teary-eyed watching Ikkis, gives Agastya Nanda a hug: 'You made me cry'

Ikkis

As Ikkis gears up for release, filmmaker Sriram Raghavan hosted a special screening of the upcoming film for Arun Khetarpal's younger brother Mukesh Khetarpal. The film is based on the bravery of Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, who lost his life during the Indo-Pak war in 1971. Mukesh was left visibly emotional as hewatched his brother's story and relived the moments.

Arun Khetarpal's brother gets emotional watching Ikkis

PVR Cinemas shared a video of the special screening which revealed Mukesh's candid reactions while watching the film. After watching Ikkis, Arun Khetarpal's brother Mukesh Khetarpal, spoke to the director and shared, "My grouse is you made me cry. You made me relive certain things that were in my mind, and moment by moment, when I saw it on the screen, I got so emotional, I couldn't stop crying. Now that I've seen the movie, the movie is 10 times or maybe 20 times or 100 times of what we see in the trailer. Oh, fantastic."

Talking to Agastya Nanda, who plays his brother's character in the film, Mukesh shared, "Whatever else you are, you will be Arun for life. There is no taking that away from you. Well done." before giving the debutant a hug.

About Arun Khetarpal

Indian army officer and tank commander, Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, was martyred in action in the Battle of Basantar during the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971 at the age of 21. His bravery during the war earned him the Param Vir Chakra posthumously. Ikkis, a film based on Arun's life, his courage and martyrdom, starring Agastya Nanda, Simar Bhatia and Dharmendra, is set to release on January 1, 2025.

Agastya's grandfather and veteran superstar Amitabh Bachchan earlier reviewd Ikkis, sharing, "Tonight to see him in frame, unable to take my eyes off each time he fills the frames of the film… his maturity, his unfiltered honesty in his performance, his presence justifying the character he portrays… nothing frith or froth, just the Arun Khetarpal soldier, who fought in his bravery as the 21-year-old, defending the nation during the India-Pak war of 1971… nothing excessive, just the perfection in every shot. When he is in the frame you only watch him, and this is not a grandfather speaking; this is a hardened viewer of cinema. And the film, flawless in its presentation… its writing… its direction… and when it ends, the eyes filled with tears of joy and pride, unable to speak out."