Lalit Prabhakar reveals how just one YouTube video and director's vision helped him play Ajmal Kasab in Prahaar

A still from the film. Pic/Youtube

Lalit Prabhakar knew he had the chance to do something unique when he was asked to audition for the role of 26/11 Mumbai attacks terrorist Ajmal Kasab for Prahaar, led by Rajkummar Rao. While two takes were all it took for director Avinash Arun to know that he had found his Kasab, becoming the on-screen terrorist was a longer journey for the actor.

Breaking down his prep, Prabhakar said, "I spent time with Avinash sir as he expressed his approach towards the character, how he wanted to humanise it, and didn't want to [adopt] the melodramatic, filmy style. He believed Kasab's psyche should be our focus. What exactly does it mean to be brainwashed? If a person has killed so many people and is ready to die, how would his eyes and expressions be?"

The actor, who is winning praise for his act in Prahaar, also read the book, 26/11 Kasab Ani Me, by Ramesh Mahale, the chief investigating officer of the attacks. Prabhakar added, "There's only one video of Kasab available on YouTube. That's all I could watch. I studied his two-three photos that are in public domain. The main task was [perfecting] the dialect and tone."