Big B plays witty brat in 'Paa': director

He has played a variety of roles in his career spanning four decades in Bollywood but megastar Amitabh Bachchan has turned the clock back by his latest avatar of a 13yearold witty brat in director R Balakrishnans upcoming film Paau00a0I think he has done a phenomenal job in playing the 13yearold Although intelligent and witty he is playing a brat in the film He is not spoiled but he is a brat admanturnedfilm director Balakrishnan saidThe 67yearold star will be essaying the role of a child suffering from progeria which accelerates ageingInternational makeup artist Stephan Dupuis who did Robin Williams makeup in Mrs Doubtfire was roped in to give Bachchan the special look in the filmWith blood veins prominent on his bald head and broken teeth the actor looks five times his age as the 13yearold AuroThe look is a very interesting one Its a very authentic reflection of progeria patients and that is why the look works so well Balakrishnan popularly known as Balki said adding that managing Bachchans appearance was not a daunting task for himI didnt have to manage him He managed everything himself said the Cheeni Kum director adding that he did not use any gimmicks or special effects in the filmI have nowhere done any special effects or gimmicks in the movie to make Bachchan resemble a kid And he is going to be of exactly his height in the film We havent made him smaller But its because of the camera he looks smaller when you see him in the filmu00a0In a role reversal of sorts Abhisekh the junior Bachchan plays Big Bs father while actress Vidya Balan essays the role of his motherThe whole idea was to make a film with Abhisekh playing the father and Amitabh the son It all began one day when I saw Amitabh pulling his sons leg after Abhisekh said something very mature It was then when I said I will make a film with Abhisekh as the father of Amitabh Balki saidInterestingly it was Balkis doctor who told him about the existence of progeriaI didnt wanted to make a film on a fictional disease where I child grows old So I had kept the idea on hold till my doctor told me that such a disease actually exists he said adding that the film is not about the ailment but about the emotional relationship between a father and sonHowever neither the director nor Bachchan himself ever met any progeria patientsYou are not allowed to meet them as they are a very special case and we didnt wanted to be insensitive We prepared ourselves by watching videos and documentaries of such patients Balki saidu00a0So is Paa following the Taare Zameen Par way by highlighting the cause of a disabled childNo there have been many films on diseases before as well Cancer started in Hindi movies 40 years ago Amnesia and paralysis also started way back Today we find films with an AIDS background The diseases are just a story matter its not the film because we are not making a documentary he shot backDescribing filmmaking as a very lengthy process Balki who is also the chairman of ad agency Lintas said he sacrificed his vacations to shoot for the filmI shot the film by taking leaves from my officeOthers take holidays but I spent my vacation in making the film he saidWhen asked about his future projects he said he hasnt given it a thoughtI dont know about the future I have no idea at all he saidAbhishek plays a young and idealist politician married to gynecologist Vidya Balan in Paa which releases December 4u00a0u00a0